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STATE   OF  WEST  VIRGINIA 

DEPARTMENT    OF    FREE    SCHOOLS 

CHARLESTON 


Architecture 


Containing 


articles  anti  Sllustratioits;  on 
©rountis,  Bouses,  ©ut= 
,  Beating,  Ventilation, 
g>rf)00l  Becoration,  furniture, 
anD  jfixtures  =  =  =  =  =  =  = 


^  ftt*  p*  §>l)atDfcei? 
&tate  S^uperintentient  of 

Cljarletfton,  1910. 


THE  NEWS-MAIL  CO.,  CHARLESTON,  W.  VA. 


BOARDS  OF  EDUCATION  OF 

THE  STATE  OF  WEST  VIRGINIA. 
GENTLEMEN  : — 

Lid  you  ever  think  what  an  important  place  you  occupy  in  our 
educational  system?  Judged  from  the  salary  you  receive  and  the 
number  of  days  you  serve  each  year,  your  office  does  not  seem  very 
important,  but  when  measured  by  the  powers  and  opportunities 
given  you,  your  position  is  one  of  the  most  powerful  in  the  state. 
Legislators  may  make  laws  requiring  adequate  school  houses  to  be 
built,  and  kept  sanitary  and  comfortable;  educators  may  go  about 
the  state  and  deliver  fine  speeches  about  modern  buildings,  grounds 
and  equipment,  and  their  influence  upon  the  health  and  character 
of  the  children ;  teachers  and  instructors  may  meet  in  institutes 
and  pass  resolutions  in  favor  of  modern  conveniences 
and  higher  salaries ;  progressive  citizens  may  ask  for  the  best  school 
advantages  for  their  children ;  but  what  does  all  this  amount  to 
when  weighed  against  the  brief  orders  placed  upon  the  record 
book  of  a  Board  of  Education?  That  record  of  business  determines 
just  how  much  money  is  available  and  how  it  shall  be  spent.  You 
hold  the  purse  strings  of  the  state  and  thereby  determine  the  time 
to  which  progress  in  school  matters  shall  march.  Occasionally  we 
find  a  Board  of  Education  that  seems  to  say  by  its  opposition  to 
progressive  movements,  "West  Virginia  to  the  rear;"  others,  by 
their  opposition  to  all  things  new,  give  their  order,  "At  rest;" 
while  many,  in  spite  of  the  fire  of  opposition  and  criticism,  ring 
out  the  command,  "Forward,  march,  West  Virginia  must  have  bet- 
ter school  houses,  better  teachers  and  a  more  efficient  citizenship." 
As  a  rule,  the  school  officers  of  this  state  are  honestly  carrying  out 
the  law  as  they  understand  it,  and  this  book  is  put  into  your  hands 
with  the  hope  that  it  will  give  you  a  keener  appreciation  of  the 
full  meaning  of  the  obligations  placed  upon  you  by  the  law  under 
which  you  serve. 

School  architecture  is  an  art.  Too  often  we  make  the  mistake  of 
supposing  that  any  architect  or  carpenter  is  able  to  devise  a  suit- 
able home  for  a  school  and  all  its  activities.  Many  times  our  ar- 
chitects plan  school  buildings  by  taking  into  consideration  pro- 
portions, gables,  architectural  effects,  lumber,  brick  and  stone,  and 


292954 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


either  forget  or  fail  to  understand  the  children  and  their  work — 
the  very  things  for  which  the  house  should  be  erected.  Those  with 
professional  knowledge  concerning  the  requirements  for  a  modern 
school  house  should  prescribe  the  general  standards,  and  from  these 
let  architects  determine  the  other  features  of  school  buildings.  In 
this  book  will  be  found  the  principal  requirements  for  school  ar- 
chitecture gathered  from  reliable  sources.  It  is  not  desired  that 
boards  of  education  will  follow  these  plans  in  every  detail,  but  it  is 
fully  expected  that  they  will  build  according  to  prescribed  stan- 
dards. The  county  superintendent  should  not  agree  to  plans  that 
break  the  well-established  laws  of  school  architecture.  Some  sug- 
gestions found  in  this  publication  will  seem  like  dreams  to  school 
officers  in  regions  where  public  money  is  scarce,  but  such  officers 
should  take  courage,  for  the  time  is  near  at  hand  when  all  dis- 
tricts of  West  Virginia  must,  by  some  means  or  other,  have  suffi- 
cient funds  to  make  school  advantages  approximately  equal 
throughout  the  state. 

We  take  this  means  of  thanking  the  architects  and  business  firms 
for  many  of  the  plates  used.  While  we  wish  to  call  attention  to 
this  material,  we  wish  it  understood  that  no  discrimination  for  or 
against  any  reliable  firm  with  which  school  officers  desire  to  deal 
is  intended. 

With  the  hope  that  school  officers  may  read  these  pages- 
and  examine  the  pictures  carefully,  and  derive  therefrom  practical 
help  for  practical  problems  and  inspiration  to  tackle  bigger  things 
in  the  future,  I  am 

Very  truly, 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


THREE   GENERATIONS  OF  SCHOOL  BUILDINGS. 

Many  suggestions  and  rules  set  forth  in  this  book  may  have  a 
tendency  to  discourage  some  boards  of  education  and  teachers  who 
are  unable  to  comply  with  them.  For  this  reason,  this  article  with 
its  pictures  showing  what  a  wonderful  transformation  has  come 
about  in  school  architecture  in  West  Virginia  is  placed  first.  School 
officers  and  teachers  have  every  reason  to  be  proud  of  the  progress 
we  are  making,  and  should  give  our  state  due  credit  for  what  has 
been  accomplished,  yet  any  halt  at  this  stage  would  be  a  great  mis- 
take. The  editor  of  The  School  Exchange  of  Newark,  N.  J.,  recently 
said,  ''Probably  no  other  State  in  the  Union  has  shown  so  com- 
plete transformation  in  its  school  architecture  in  so  short  a  time 
as  West  Virginia." 

Many  years  ago  Whittier  sang; 

"Still  sits  the  schoolhouse  by  the  road, 
A  ragged  beggar  sunning; 
Around  it  still  the  sumachs  grow, 
And  blackberry  vines  are  running." 

Although  we  still  have  entirely  too  many  dilapidated  old,  beg- 
garly, box-schoolhouses,'  with  doors  battered  almost  to  destruction, 
windows  small  and  broken,  general  appearance  ragged,  yards  cov- 
ered with  a  few  abused  bushes,  weeds  and  "blackberry  vines," 
they  are  marked  for  removal  just  as  soon  as  financial  conditions 
will  permit.  The  "beggars,"  for  the  most  part  have  given  way  to 
a  better  type.  A  brief  review  of  the  evolution  of  our  school  build- 
ings should  give  us  intelligent  cause  for  pride  and  courage  for  fur- 
ther efforts  in  this  direction. 

The  First  Generation — The  Log  Schoolh&use. 

It  is  not  possible  to  obtain  an  accurate  picture  of  the  earliest 
pioneer  building,  but  from  history  we  know  it  was  a  very  crude  log 
structure,  generally  with  but  one  or  two  windows,  and  they  made 
of  greased  paper,  rather  than  glass,  with  puncheon  floors  and  desks, 
and  a  crude  log  fire-place  in  one  end  of  the  building.  The  modesty 
of  this  pioneer  educational  institution,  however,  is  not  to  be  de- 
spised, for  a  stalwart  commonwealth  now  points  with  the  greatest 
pride  to  the  warriors,  statesmen,  poets,  and  philosophers  whose 
early  education,  and  is  some  cases  whose  entire  education,  was  re- 
ceived in  these  humble  schools.  The  development  of  a  country, 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


true  to  the  laws  of  nature,  follows  the  line  of  least  resistance  and 
as  a  consequence  we  find  West  Virginia,  though  early  explored,  ly- 
ing undeveloped  for  nearly  a  century  while  the  great  rush  of  rail- 
road building  and  agricultural  development  was  going  on  in  the 
Mississippi  Valley.  When  the  system  of  travel  and  transportation 
changed  from  the  stage-coach  to  the  steam  railway,  the  numerous 
colonies  and  communities  among  the  mountains  of  West  Virginia 
were  left  to  themselves  and  for  a  half  a  century  the  resources  of 
the  State  were  unknown  to  the  commercial  world.  As  railroad  de- 


A  PIONEER. 

velopment  continued,  however,  and  the  country  began  to  pay  more 
attention  to  commercial  industries,  investigation  began  in  this 
State,  in  nearly  all  instances  to  reward  the  investigators  with  re- 
sources beyond  their  most  sanguine  dreams.  With  this  commercial 
awakening  came  the  opportunity  which  the  hardy  pioneers  had 
waited  for  through  the  years,  and  with  the  improved  means  at  their 
command  they  soon  began  the  construction  of  a  better  type  of 
school  buildings.  The  story  of  the  development  is  well  indicated 
by  the  history  of  the  log  school  house.  In  1890,  for  instance,  there 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


were  1,007  such  buildings  out  of  a  total  number  of  4,814  school 
buildings  in  West  Virginia.  In  1900  the  total  number  of  school 
houses  in  the  State  had  increased  from  4,814  to  5,916  but  the  num- 
ber of  log  houses  had  decreased  from  1,007  to  345.  For  this  year 
just  ending  the  number  of  school  houses  in  this  State  is  a  little 
over  7,000  and  there  remains  something  like  a  score  only  of  the 
ragged  old  log  house  pioneers,  grim  reminders  of  a  day  and  con- 
dition forever  past  in  West  Virginia. 

The  Second  Generation— The  Box  Style  of  Architecture. 


"A  RAGGED  BEGGAR  SUNNING." 

This  log  school-house,  this  grandfather,  this  pioneer,  rough  and 
ready,  and  harmonious  with  the  home  and  life  of  the  early  settler, 
passed  away  and  in  its  stead  came  the  more  pretentious  box-shaped 
frame  building  which  still  remains  in  many  communities.  Break- 
ing most  of  the  laws  of  architecture,  beauty,  heating,  lighting,  ven- 
tilation, and  sanitation,  this  style  of  building  served  a  generation 


8  SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 

and  has  to  its  credit  much  good  work.  However,  the  life  and  en- 
vironment compatible  with  such  school  homes  have  disappeared, 
and  such  a  schoolhouse  (we  have  hundreds  of  them)  and  surround- 
ings stand  as  convincing  evidence  that  education  in  some  commun- 
ities has  not  kept  pace  with  progress.  People  seem  quite  ready  to 
abandon  old  styles  in  dress;  they  readily  substitute  the  new  and 
more  useful  tools  for  those  out  of  date — the  improved  drill  for  the 
old  harrow,  the  reaper  for  the  sickle,  the  steam  thresher  for  the 
windmill — but  in  many  sections  they  have  allowed  the  old-fashion- 
ed schoolhouse  to  remain  long  after  all  its  companions  disappeared. 

For  a  dozen  or  more  years  the  educators  of  the  State  have  been 
hammering  away  at  the  question  of  architecture,  heating,  lighting 
and  ventilating,  especially  in  the  County  Institutes  where  all  the 
teachers  of  the  county  assemble.  As  a  consequence  a  more  intelli- 
gent and  wholesome  sentiment  on  that  question  has  been  developed 
and  there  is  now  more  condemnation  for  that  style  of  structure  in 
most  counties  of  the  State  than  there  was  for  its  predecessor,  the 
old  log  house. 

Along  with  this  sentiment-making  process  came  a  bit  of  legisla- 
tion on  the  subject  which  as  now  revised  reads  as  follows: 

"In  the  construction  of  school  houses  the  board  of  education  of 
each  district  shall  have  regard  to  economy,  convenience  and  dura- 
bility of  structure  and  the  health  and  comfort  of  pupils,  and  no 
such  school  house  shall  be  constructed  until  the  location  and  plans 
thereof  have  first  been  approved  by  the  county  superintendent, 
and  in  the  event  the  board  of  education  cannot  agree  upon  plans  or 
location,  the  county  superintendent  shall  select  the  plans  and  loca- 
tion for  such  house." 

This  legislation  backed  by  professionally  inclined  county  super- 
intendents and  a  rapidly  improving  public  sentiment  is  doing  much 
to  remove  this  second  generation  of  school  houses.  The  store-box 
type  must  go. 

The  Third  Generations—The  Useful- Attractive  Type. 

With  the  development  of  the  rich  resources  of  our  state  came 
much  wealth  and  with  the  wealth  came  a  desire  for  higher  living. 
The  same  sentiment  that  built  the  new  home  and  bought  the  new 
furniture  is  demanding  new,  beautiful,  and  well-furnished  school 
buildings  for  the  children  who  come  from  these  attractive  homes. 

Citizens  who  a  few  years  ago  dubbed  libraries,  slate  blackboards, 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


ventilating  systems,  cloak  rooms,  and  storm  porches  as  "new-fan- 
gled frills"  now  look  upon  these  things  as  necessities.  The  keener 
business  men  of  the  state  are  learning  that  it  "pays  to  advertise " 
their  communities  and  that  a  commodious,  beautiful  school  house 
set  on  a  large,  well-kept  lot  is  the  neighborhood's  best  advertiser. 
The  parents  are  beginning  to  realize  that  children  are  much  influ- 
enced by  their  school  surroundings — that  decent  outbuildings  and 
school  rooms  are  conducive  to  decent  habits,  that  beauty  of  en- 
vironment begets  beauty  of  life. 


SIDE 


A  MODERN  SCHOOL  HOUSE. 


The  growing  sentiment  for  better  school  architecture  is  well  in- 
dicated by  the  increase  in  the  number  of  brick  school  buildings. 
In  1890  there  were  127  brick  school  houses  in  the  state;  in  1900, 
184;  in  1910,  at  least  300.  "When  we  take  into  consideration  the 
fact  that  West  Virginia  has  no  large  cities,  this  is  a  good  showing. 

Members  of  boards  of  education,  county  superintendents,  teach- 
ers and  citizens  should  look  over  these  pictures  and  see  what  gener- 
ation of  school  architecture  is  best  represented  in  their  respective 
communities.  If  you  have  not  the  best,  stir  up  your  patriotism, 
and  begin  with  one  accord  a  campaign  for  better  public  school 
property. 


10  SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 

"BEFORE"  AND  "AFTER." 

Patent  medicine  firms  are  fond  of  showing  the  appearance  of 
•their  patients  "before"  and  "after"  taking.  Indeed  pictures  do 
much  to*  convince  us  along  many  lines  as  they  speak  their  message 
with  a  flash.  The  following  contrasts  strikingly  show  several 
grades  of  school  buildings  "before"  and  "after"  taking  modern 
architectural  ideas. 

The  old  log  house  of  Pocahontas  County  is  worthy  careful  exam- 
ination. The  firmness  of  the  foundation,  the  neatness  displayed  in 
the  chinks,  in  the  gable,  on  the  corners  and  roof,  indicate  a  taste 
that  the  new  building  has  inherited  in  large  measure.  With  all  its 
good  qualities,  the  sturdy  old  house  looks  as  "a  thing  apart"  with 
no  natural  connection  with  life.  The  hole  in  the  door  says  that 
the  boys  considered  the  building  an  enemy  rather  than  a  friend. 

Many  men  are  ever  ready  to  point  out  the  fact  that  great  schol- 
ars and  statesmen  come  from  log  houses  and  log  schoolhouses.  With- 
out thinking,  they  claim  this  as  an  argument  in  favor  of  these  con- 
ditions. Did  you  ever  hear  of  these  great  products  of  such  envir- 
onment saying,  "My  greatness  is  easily  explained,  I  had  the  ad- 
vantage of  going  to  an  old  fashioned  school,  in  a  log  house"?  No, 
this  is  not  the  explanation  given  by  them  and  their  admirers.  We 
always  credit  them  with  the  ability  to  succeed  in  spite  of  the  lack 
of  proper  school  advantages,  and  little  note  the  thousands  who  stop 
far  short  of  their  possibilities  because  of  no  proper  incentive  to 
push  ahead.  Geniuses  can  do  unusual  things  and  often  break  down 
all  barriers  between  them  and  success,  but  we  can  ill  afford  to  ex- 
pect so  much  of  the  average  child.  Be  he  a  mediocre  or  a  budding 
genius,  he  is  safer,  with  conditions  that  coax  the  natural  powers 
to  proper  growth. 

The  next  picture  shows  the  neat,  artistic  building  which  took  the 
place  of  the  one  described  above.  From  foundation  to  bell-tower, 
all  is  neat  and  substantial.  For  two  small  windows  we  find  four 
large,  plain  ones;  for  the  chinks  and  mud  mortar,  the  weather- 
boarding  and  paint ;  for  the  exposed  puncheon  door,  a  protected  en- 
trance with  neat  door  and  transom ;  for  lack  of  room  and  ugliness, 
we  find  comfortableness  and  beauty.  With  surroundings  like  these 
supplemented  with  good  teachers  the  young  mountaineers  of  Poca- 
hontas should  grow  as  tall  and  straight  as  the  trees  by  the  build- 
ing. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


11 


SEEDERT   BEFORE   IMPROVEMENT. 


SEEBERT   AFTER   IMPROVEMENT. 


12 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


The  next  group  of  buildings  is  used  to  show  "before"  and 
"after"  consolidation.  The  Wolf  Run  School  (log  house)  and  the 
Hoffman  School  (picture  below  on  the  right)  of  Barker  District, 
Barbour  County,  were  consolidated  in  1909.  The  roomy,  attract- 
ive, two -room  building  shown  in  the  picture  was  the  result.  Coun- 
ty Superintendent  A.  F.  Shroyer  deserves  much  credit  for  this  and 
similar  movements  in  his  county. 


WOLF  RUN  SCHOOL. 


HOFFMAN  SCHOOL. 


NEW  CONSOLIDATED  SCHOOL  WHICH  TAKES  THE  PLACE  OF 
THE  ONES  ABOVE. 

These  buildings  stand  for  another  idea  worth  mentioning  here. 
They  represent  the  "give-and-take"  tolerant  spirit  between  two 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE.  13 

communities  which  is  so  necessary  to  the  successful  working  out  of 
large  school  questions.  Each  neighborhood  naturally  wished  to 
retain  its  own  school  or  have  the  new  one  in  its  place,  but  like  good 
citizens,  they  ignored  personal  preference  and  agreed  to  a  location 
best  suited  to  the  largest  number. 

Consolidation  of  schools  is  neither  possible  nor  desirable  in  many 
parts  of  West  Virginia,  but  there  are  scores  of  places  in  this  state 
where,  consolidation  would  greatly  improve  the  schools.  Where  it 
has  been  tried,  some  or  all  of  the  following  advantages  have  been 
secured : 

1.  Better  buildings  and  furniture. 

2.  Better  attendance. 

3.  More  systematic  grading. 

4.  More  efficient  supervision. 

5.  Higher  quality  of  teaching. 

6.  Better  health  among  pupils. 

7.  More  community  school  spirit. 

8.  Greater  incentives  to  reach  high  school  work. 

9.  Less  total  running  expense. 

10.     Stronger  demand  for  good  roads. 

The  improvement  in  the  town  and  village  schools  is  even  more 
marked  than  that  in  the  rural  schools.  The  pictures  chosen  to 
represent  the  old  and  the  new  tell  their  own  story.  No  doubt  the 
patrons,  teachers,  and  pupils  thought  the  barn-like  building  shown 
in  the  first  picture  was  "a  thing  of  beauty  and  a  joy  forever"  when 
it  was  built.  I  imagine  some  citizens  complained  of  the  extrava- 
gance of  the  board  of  education  for  building  beyond  the  needs  of 
the  time. 

But  the  progressive  people  of  Williamstown  soon  out-grew  the 
old  shell.  They  grew  weary  of  its  staring  appearance,  its  rickety 
steps,  scattered  chopped-up  windows,  its  meaningless  gables,  and 
accusing  bell-tower.  They  sought  something  to  show  their  pros- 
perity, their  pride  and  their  faith  in  schools.  The  new  building 
was  the  result. 

In  1890  West  Virginia  had  not  a  single  building  erected  for 
high  school  purposes  exclusively.  For  this  reason  most  of  our  high 
school  architecture  has  been  good  from  the  start.  At  the  present 
time  there  are  a  score  or  more  of  towns  and  cities  with  commodious 
high  school  buildings  and  many  others  are  either  erecting  new 
ones  or  planning  to  do  so  in  the  near  future. 


14 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


THE   OLD  AND  THX  Nzw  AT   WlLLIAMST)w 


IAMST3WX. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


15 


OLD  HIGH  SCHOOL — WHEELING. 


The  "old"  and  the  "new"  in  Wheeling  shows  the  same  forward 
movement  from  the  make-shift  to  the  school  building  erected  for 
a  purpose.  The  new  building  at  Wheeling  is  one  of  the  finest  in 
the  South.  It  costs  the  city  $225,000  and  will  pay  large  dividends. 


16 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


CARE  AND  IMPROVEMENT  OF  SCHOOL  PROPERTY. 
In  many  sections  of  our  state  boards  of  education  have  much  rea- 
son for  a  lack  of  pride  in  providing  attractive  school  property, 
for  many  teachers  fail  to  give  such  property  careful  protection. 
Too  often  new,  well-painted  school  houses  soon  show  the  marks  of 
lead  pencils,  chalk,  knives,  and  mud.  Sometimes  a  careless  janitor 

or  pupil  thoughtlessly  damages 
the  appearance  of  the  building 
by  sweeping  in  a  way  that 
throws  muddy  water  against  the 
weather  boarding  about  the 
door ;  sometimes  muddy  balls  are 
bounced  against  a  white  gable 

Courtesy  Ohio  Agricultural  College.  Until       it     is        as       Spotted        as 

WHAT  CAN  BE  DONE  HEBE?  a     leopard.       New     locks     are 

broken;  window  lights  and  shades  are  neglected;  newly  var- 
nished seats  are  carved  by  the  jack-knife;  dictionaries  are  torn 
up,  and  library  books  lost;  charts  and  other  apparatus  are  left  to 
the  dominion  of  the  dust.  This  is  not  the  rule,  but  is  too  true  for 
a  number  of  our  schools.  Boards  of  education  should  call  atten- 
tion of  the  teacher  to  these  matters  and  teachers  in  turn  should 
take  much  pride  in  preserving  in  good  order  the  property  entrusted 
to  their  care. 

Indeed  more  than  mere  preservation  is  required  of  teachers — 
they  should  in  many  respects  improve  the  school  outfit.  Plenty 
of  hot  water  and  washing  powd- 
der  will  remove  many  ugly 
spots.  A  well  organized 
"Clean-up  Band"  will  make  the 
school  yard  shine  in  a  few  noon 
periods.  The  writer  knew  one 
energetic  rural  teacher  who 
planed  from  the  old  desks  the 
dirt  and  carvings  and  bright- 
ened  them  up  with  a  few  cents  Courtesy  Q  ,  Rern 

worth  of  paint.  IT  NEEDS  THE  DOCTOR. 

We  use  many  fine  phrases  about  patriotism,  but  fail  to  make  the 
children  understand  that  Uncle  Sam  is  represented  just  as  much 
by  public  property  as  he  is  by  flags  and  band  music,  F^om  both 
the  standpoint  of  economy  and  good  teaching,  it  is  incumbent  upon 
those  in  charge  of  school  buildings  and  school  children  not  only  to 
preserve  but  to  improve  what  the  public  has  provided. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


Courtesy  Supt    Edtoard  Hyatt,  Cal. 
BEFORE  IMPROVEMENT. 

"Isn't    this    desolation    and    hopelessness?     Look    at    the    closets!     What    kind    of 
children  would  you  expect  to  raise  in  such  a  place  as  this?" 


Courtesy  Supt.  Edward  Hyatt,  Cal. 
AFTER  IMPRDVEMENT. 


'This    is    the    same    sehoolhoupe,    but    has    teen    born    again." 


18 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


However,  all  the  blame  and  responsibility  must  not  fall  upon 
teachers,  who  many  times  wish  to  improve  the  condition  of  school 
property,  but  are  handicapped  for  want  of  a  small  appropriation. 
When  the  meagerness  of  the  salary  and  the  multitudinous  duties  of 
the  common  school  teacher  are  considered,  we  do  not  wonder  that 
they  refuse  to  spend  extra  time  and  money  to  do  just  what  should 
be  done  by  boards  of  education  by  direct  order. 

Besides  the  annual  inspection  and  overhauling  of  school  houses, 
there  should  be  occasional  visits  for  the  purpose  of  taking  stock  of 
school  conditions.  To  allow  a  window  shade  to  go  to  ruin  for 
want  of  an  opportune  tack;  to  allow  the  stove  and  plastering  to 
be  ruined  for  want  of  a  few  shingles  placed  in  the  right  way  at  the 
right  time ;  to  allow  property  to  rust  out  and  rot  out  for  want  of 
care — this,  all  this,  is  poor  economy.  In  this  connection,  boards  of 
education  should  remember  that  a  district  superintendent  is  the 
ideal  officer  to  act  as  property  manager  for  the  Board. 

Let  us,  in  the  name  of  good  business,  in  the  name  of  our  state 
pride,  in  the  name  and  for  the  good  of  West  Virginia's  best  crop 
— our  boys  and  girls — preserve  and  improve  what  school  property 
we  have  and  plan  to  build  better  in  the  future. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


19 


REMODELING  SCHOOL  BUILDINGS. 

There  are  many  well-built,  old-fashioned  school  buildings  which 
can  be  remodeled  and  made  more  useful  and  attractive  at  small 
cost.  Boards  of  education  that  do  not  have  sufficient  funds  for 
building  new  houses  should  seek  ways  of  bringing  buildings  al- 
ready constructed  up-to-date.  This  is  being  done  in  many  places 
in  West  Virginia,  especially  in  small  towns.  Cuts  of  such  improve- 
ments could  not  be  secured,  hence  we  present  suggestions  for  re- 
modeling obtained  through  the  kindness  of  the  State  Superinten- 
dent of  California. 


JOLON  SCHOOL  REMODELED. 

The  first  plate  (Jolon  School)  shows  the  floor  plan  of  an  old 
style,  one-room  building  with  windows  on  both  sides.  Below  it  is 
sliovn  the  same  building  with  a  new  porch  added,  a  small  library 
room  partitioned  off,  and  the  doors  and  windows  rearranged.  But 
few  of  our  one-room  buildings  are  large  enough  to  allow  partitions, 
but  many  of  them  can  be  much  improved  by  adding  a  substantial 
porch  where  the  children  may  step  outside  the  school  room  without 
being  in  the  storm. 


20 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


*  Jolon  S&hool,  before.   T~e  Hf  a ola.d'*ta 


Softool. 


I 


-Closs   t>  Ooa 


Ji  cc  ^ 


Courtesy  Supt.  Edward  Hyatt,   California. 

Tha   above  cutr   arft   .elf-explanatory,   showing   in   detail   what   can   te    accomplice  J 
by   a   httlp  expense   and   ingenuity. 


SCHOOL  ARCBITECTURS. 


21 


u 


BQQJ 

1  11  1  11  II  » 

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1  R  1  II  1  1  1  1 

EED 

TT_ 

I  1,1  fl    D  1  II 

SCHOOL.     P?.OOM 

Mill 

I  1  II  II    0 

1  II  1  II    1  I  i 

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LI 

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Pi.  AM    O 

ROOM    SCHOOL-    &  U  1 1_  D  I  <N  G 


PU./AM 

Corutcxy  Sipt.  Howard  A.   Gais,  Missouri. 

In  many  places  the  window  spaces  on  the  right  of  pupils  can  be 
closed  and  weatherboarded,  and  some  extra  windows  placed  on  tht, 
left  side  with  about  two  half  windows  placed  high  in  the  rear  end 
of  the  building.  Painting  outside  and  in,  and  new  furnishings  are 
always  in  order.  This  repairing  will  cost  some  money,  but  if  a 
reasonable  expenditure  will  make  old  buildings  "as  good  as  new" 
school  officers  should  feel  satisfied. 

The  two  floor  plans  on  this  page  show  the  kind  of  remodeling 
that  is  being  done  in  Missouri.  The  old,  poorly  planned  building 
was  turned  around  and  greatly  improved  in  appearance  and  use- 
fulness by  adding  addition  in  front.  More  complete  directions  con- 
cerning windows,  stoves,  decorations,  etc.,  will  be  found  in  other 
articles. 


22 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


Courtesy  Supt.  Howard  A.  Gass,  Missouri. 


An    ordinary    school    house    of    the    older    type— windows    all    around    at    regular 
intervals. 


Courtesy  Supt.  Howard  A.  Gass,  Missouri. 

Same   ouilding   remodeled,   with   windows  banked   on   one   side.      See   floor   plans   on 
another  page,   showing  detailed   changes. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE.  23 


CHOOSING  A  SITE. 

The  Law.  Sec.  13  of  the  School  Law  says,  "The  board  of  educa- 
tion of  every  district  shall  provide  by  purchase,  condemnation, 
leasing,  building  or  otherwise,  suitable  school  houses,  and  grounds 
in  their  districts,  in  such  locations  as  will  best  accommodate  the  pu- 
pils thereof."  Sec.  14  states,  "No  school  house  shall  be  constructed 
until  the  location  and  plan  thereof  have  first  been  approved  by 
the  county  superintendent,  and  in  the  event  the  board  of  education 
cannot  agree  upon  plans  or  location,  the  county  superintendent 
shall  select  the  plans  and  location  for  such  house. ' ' 

Consideration  for  Community.  Those  who  select  sites  should 
note  that  the  law  says,  "suitable"  site  that  "will  best  accommodate 
the  pupils"  of  the  district.  In  the  spirit  of  this  law  the  first  thing 
to  consider  is  the  approximate  center  of  the  school  population. 
Many  times  influential  citizens  or  special  interests  use  their  influ- 
ence to  take  the  school  far  from  its  natural  location  for  selfish  or 
business  interests.  Those  to  whom  the  people  intrust  their  rights 
should  be  courageous  and  absolutely  impartial  in  determining  the 
location  of  a  school  building.  It  often  happens  that  the  topog- 
raphy of  the  land  or  the  distribution  of  the  population  would  make 
it  advisable  to  determine  upon  a  location  some  distance  from  the 
geographical  center  of  the  district.  However,  the  probability  of 
future  development  should  be  taken  into  consideration.  If  a  choice 
must  be  made  between  a  small  amount  of  convenience  of  some 
pupils  and  an  opportunity  to  secure  a  large,  suitable  lot,  the  latter 
should  rule.  It  often  happens  in  towns  and  cities  that  in  order  to 
secure  a  place  quiet  and  roomy  a  site  far  from  the  center  of  popu- 
lation should  be  chosen.  The  school  deserves  the  choicest  location 
in  the  community. 

Size.  We  hear  on  every  side  words  of  condemnation  for  the 
small,  unsightly  lots  surrounding  our  rural  schools,  yet  many  new 
school  houses  are  being  built  on  lots  that  will  seem  just  as  inade- 
quate to  those  who  live  a  quarter  of  a  century  from  now.  Some 
boards  of  education  that  have  sufficient  of  the  people's  money,  pur- 
chase for  a  rural  school  a  little,  irregular,  stony  lot  from  on>eighth 
to  one-fourth  acre  in  size.  Such  purchases  are  a  very  poor  use  of 
public  money,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  some  unthinking  tax-payers 
will  praise  the  board  for  its  economy.  Before  the  location  is  made, 
land  can  be  bought  or  condemned  at  reasonable  rates,  but  when 


24 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


the  house  is  built  it  takes  much  money  to  push  back  the  school  lot 's 
boundary  lines.  Some  time  in  the  future  our  rural  schools  will 
be  in  session  nine  months  and  school  gardens  and  simple  experi- 
ments in  agriculture  will  be  in  demand.  When  such  time  comes, 
imagine  how  we  shall  bewail  the  shortsightedness  of  school  officers 
who  think  that  room  for  eave  projection  and  foot  paths  around  a 
school  house  is  about  all  the  ground  necessary! 


To  be  more  definite,  a  rural  school  should  have  at  least  one 
acre  of  smooth,  tillable  land.  Two  acres  make  a  much  better  lot. 
When  two  acres  can  be  secured,  the  building  should  occupy  the 
center  of  the  front  acre.  This  will  leave  a  grassy  lawn  in  front 
for  trees,  shrubbery  and  flowers.  The  acre  to  the  rear  will  provide 
sufficient  room  for  playgrounds  so  necessary  to  any  good  school. 
Authorities  agree  that  in  towns  or  cities  all  school  lots  should  be 
large  enough  to  afford  thirty  square  feet  of  ground  for  each  pupil 
in  school. 

Soil  and  Exposure.  It  is  a  well  recognized  rule  that  clay  and 
loam  are  not  suitable  soils  for  building  sites  as  they  (especially  the 
clay)  retain  too  much  moisture.  Although  the  parable  tells  of  a 
wise  man  that  builded  his  house  upon  a  rock,  that  practice  is  not 
always  wise  as  many  solid-rock  locations  have  such  strata  and 
drainage  as  to  hold  dampness  and  cause  an  unusual  amount  of 
water  to  appear  during  wet  weather.  However,  when  other  consid- 
erations make  it  desirable  to  build  on  such  soil,  good  conditions 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE.  25 

can  be  secured  by  proper  drainage.  Gravel  and  sandy  soils  are 
best  suited  for  school  houses  as  they  allow  even  distribution  and 
quick  disappearance  of  moisture.  "Filled  in"  soil,  especially  ar- 
tificial soil  containing  any  decaying  matter  should  be  avoided.  If 
possible  the  lot  should  be  in  an  open,  airy  place  with  a  southern 
exposure.  Plenty  of  sunshine  is  a  very  essential  consideration  in 
•determining  the  location  of  a  school. 

Surroundings.  Many  school  houses  in  West  Virginia  are  nearby 
mills,  factories,  mines,  railroad  sidings,  street  car  lines,  pumping 
stations,  et  cetera,  These  annoyances  make  normal,  quiet  school 
work  impossible.  They  injure  the  hearing,  the  nervous  system  and 
the  general  health  of  the  teacher  and  pupils.  Such  locations  do 
much  to  waste  the  money  appropriated  for  school  purposes.  "While 
trees  are  much  recommended  for  school  yards,  too  many  of  them 
near  the  building  work  injury  by  retaining  too  much  dampness  and 
shutting  out  too  much  light  and  sunshine.  Hills,  however  beau- 
tiful, should  not  crowd  too  close  to  the  school  windows  and  thus 
shut  off  the  light  and  view.  Let  there  be  light,  sunshine,  and  quiet 
in  and  about  our  school  buildings. 

TYPES  OF  RURAL  SCHOOL  BUILDINGS. 

Some  General  Standards. 

These  topics  are  well  discussed  in  some  of  the  other  articles  of 
this  book,  but  are  placed  here  in  outline  form  to  call  attention  to 
them  in  connection  with  the  plans  for  buildings.  These  require- 
ments are  generally  accepted  as  standard  by  those  who  have  made 
careful  study  of  school  architecture  and  economy. 

Size.  Floor  space  should  be  sufficient  to  provide  at  least  15  sq. 
ft.  of  floor  space  for  each  student  and  length  and  breadth  should 
be  in  about  the  proportion  of  32  ft.  to  24  ft.  No  room  should  be 
more  than  32  ft.  long  and  26  ft.  wide.  The  height  should  be  suf- 
ficient to  allow  each  pupil  about  200  cu.  ft.  of  air  volume.  That 
would  require  a  height  of  about  13  ft.,  although  a  very  slight  re- 
duction of  this  is  permissible  in  some  types  of  buildings. 

Floors.  Maple  in  widths  not  to  exceed  3  in.  makes  the  best  wood 
floor.  Deadening  material  of  some  kind  should  be  used.  Some 
good  authorities  recommend  very  coarse  cheap  cement  a  few  inches 
thick  as  a  cheap  deadening  material.  It  can  be  put  between  joists 
•on  a  rough  false  floor  made  from  waste  lumber.  Floors  should  be 


26  SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 

blind  nailed  and  free  from  cracks  or  flaws.  There  should  be  no  el- 
evated platform  in  the  school  room. 

Walls.  There  should  be  wainscoating  of  tile,  hardwood,  or  hard 
plaster  thoroughly  painted  in  darker  color  than  the  rest  of  the  wall. 
Plaster,  painted  and  stippled  to  prevent  a  glaring  light,  makes  a 
satisfactory  wall.  If  wood  is  used,-  the  boards  should  be  very  closely 
fitted  to  prevent  accumulation  of  dust.  (See  other  articles  for  com- 
plete directions  for  color  of  walls).  Picture  moulding  in  harmony 
with  rest  of  woodwork  should  extend  around  the  room. 

Windows.  The  window  space  should  equal  one-fifth  to  one- 
fourth  floor  space.  The  bi-lateral  arrangement,  that  is,  windows 
banked  on  the  left  with  a  few  smaller  ones  placed  higher  in  the 
rear  will  be  considered  the  rule  in  West  Virginia.  Windows  on 
one  side  only  is  advocated  by  many,  but  there  is  danger  that  this 
arrangement  will  not  give  sufficient  light.  The  windows  in  the 
rear  can  be  covered  by  shades  except  on  dark  days  or  under  con- 
ditions demanding  the  light  they  afford.  This  will  prevent  cross 
shadows  and  injury  to  the  teacher's  eyes.  The  bottom  of  the  win- 
dows should  be  level  with  the  pupils'  eyes,  3  to  4  ft.  high  general- 
ly, and  the  top  should  reach  near  the  ceiling.  Pupils  in  all  parts 
of  the  room  should  be  able  to  see  a  large  area  of  the  sky.  The  win- 
dows should  be  plain,  not  having  more  than  two  glasses  in  each 
sash,  and  should  never  be  curved  at  top  as  this  cuts  off  some  light 
and  makes  mending  difficult. 

A  good  authority  says,  ' '  The  best  light  for  a  school  room  is  north  ; 
next  best  northeast ;  then  south,  then  east,  and  lastly  west. ' ' 

Window  Shades.  The  shades  should  harmonize  with  the  color  of 
the  wall.  A  soft  green  is  a  good  color.  There  are  several  ways  of 
fastening  shades. 

(1)  The  most  common  and  poorest  plan  is  to  fasten  them  at  the 
top  of  the  window,  thus  making  it  impossible  to  shut  off  a  glare  of 
light  at  bottom  of  window  without  pulling  the  shade  over  the 
whole  window. 

(2)  The  use  of  two  shades  fastened  in  the  middle  of  each  win- 
dow is  highly  recommended.    This  makes  it  possible  to  cover  or  ex- 
pose the  upper  or  lower  part  at  pleasure. 

(3)  The  shade  may  be  fastened  at  bottom  and  run  upward  by 
using  the  cord  over  a  small  spool  or  pulley  at  top  of  window.    This- 
is  a  good  plan  as  it  provides  for  cutting  off  the  direct  light  at  bot- 
tom and  exposing  the  sky  through  the  upper  part  of  window. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


27 


(4)  The  best  method  of  ad- 
justing shades  to  suit  all  con- 
ditions is  shown  in  the  accom- 
panying cut.  This  simple  ad- 
juster allows  the  whole  shade 
to  be  pulled  up  or  down  at 
will.  By  this  ingenious  con- 
trivance any  portion  of  the 
window  can  be  shaded  without 
obstructing  the  light  above 
and  below. 

Blackboards.  Blackboard 

should  extend  along  side  and 
end  not  occupied  by  windows. 
It  should  be  placed  low  enough 
to  be  easily  used  by  pupils  (2 
or  2l/2  ft.  above  floor  accord- 
ing to  grade  of  pupils,  top 
never  more  than  6%  ft.  above 
floor).  Natural  slate  is  the 
best  material,  though  dull 


Courtesy  Van  Bolt  &  Co. 

WINDOW  SHADE  ADJUSTER. 

black  finish  pulp  is  good  and  much  cheaper.  Blackboard  with 
shining  surface  should  not  be  used.  A  chalk  trough  open  at  the 
ends  and  covered  with  hinged  wire  netting  should  be  placed 
below  blackboards. 


ONE  ROOM  SCHOOL  BUILDINGS. 

The  first  three  plans  of  one-room  buildings  are  taken  from  a 
pamphlet  on  school  buildings  by  the  Smith  System  Heating  Com- 
pany, Indianapolis,  Ind.  If  the  boards  of  education  wish  to  use 
this  system  of  heating,  the  company  will  furnish  free  of  charge 
large  blue-prints  of  the  plans  selected  with  complete  details  and 
specifications.  If  the  heating  system  is  not  desired,  the  plans  and 
specifications  will  be  furnished  at  a  small  price.  As  a  general  rule, 
stock  plans  should  not  be  used,  for  they  do  not  provide  for  peculiar 
local  conditions  and  the  individuality  which  school  buildings  should 
possess.  However,  in  some  cases,  boards  may  be  able  to  economize 
by  purchasing  such  a  plan  and  adapting  it  to  their  needs. 


28 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


Plan  No.  1. 


FRONT  ELEVATION. 


FLOOR  PLAN. 

This  is  a  very  simple  inexpensive  plan  suitable  for  an  ordinary 
rural  school  where  funds  are  not  available  for  a  more  elaborate 
building.  Separate  cloak  rooms  for  boys  and  girls  are  provided 
and  so  arranged  that  pupils  pass  through  the  cloak  rooms  when  en- 
tering. "Where  buildings  have  no  water  system,  the  room  marked 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


"closet"  can  be  included  in  a  small  library  room,  or  a  main  en- 
trance can  be  substituted  for  the  place  marked  "cupboard"  and 
"book-case." 

Plan  No.  2. 

This  plan  speaks  for  itself.  The  time  has  come  for  the  country 
schools  to  break  away  from  the  one-room  tradition  and  add  some 
•  conveniences  that  the  town  and  city  schools  have  had  for  many 
years.  A  neatly  furnished  library  room  with  a  case  or  two  of  good 
books  is  a  profitable  investment  which  every  community  should 
possess.  The  room  marked  for  fuel  can  be  used  for  a  shop  for 
manual  training.  What  district  or  county  will  have  the  honor  to 
lead  in  providing  for  some  manual  training  in  rural  schools?  A 


FRONT  ELEVATION. 

room  like  this  can  be  supplied  at  small  expense  with  a  work-bench 
<;nd  a  few  tools.  Indeed  there  are  but  few  neighborhoods  in  West 
Virginia  that  would  not  make  or  donate  this  material  if  the  teach- 
er or  some  other  leader  would  explain  the  usefulness  of  this  kind 
of  work.  Such  work  is  worth  all  it  costs  in  the  training  it  gives  the 


30 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


pupils  and  if  properly  directed  will  return  to  the  school  and  neigh- 
borhod  material  equal  in  value  to  the  amount  expended  for  this 
purpose.  The  pupils  can  make  desks,  shelves,  mathematical  blocks, 
picture  frames,  et  cetera,  for  use  in  the  school  or  home,  and  who 
will  deny  that  such  work  affords  better  education  than  much  of  the 
meaningless  drill  given  on  topics  that  bear  no  relation  to  country 
life  ?  If  a  board  of  education  has  not  sufficient  funds  for  providing 
these  extra  rooms,  they  can  be  left  out  of  this  plan  without  injury. 


FLOOR  PLAN  OF  NO.  2. 

Especial  attention  should  be  called  to  the  appearance  of  this 
school  building  as  shown  in  the  front  elevation.  In  the  first  place, 
its  well-balanced,  substantial  appearance  attracts  notice.  The  med- 
ium pitch  of  the  roof  is  a  great  improvement  on  the  steep  stock  ap- 
pearance of  most  of  our  typical  school  buildings.  The  broad  eaves, 
the  neatly  finished  cornice  work,  the  well-protected  corners  and 
door-ways,  are  worthy  of  the  consideration  of  boards  of  education. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


31 


Plan  No.  3. 

This  plan  shows  the  plan  of  a  more  expensive  building  than  1 
and  2,  but  when  we  consider  the  fact  that  the  same  foundation  and 
roof  are  required  for  all  buildings  of  the  same  size,  we  will  see 
that  it  is  good  economy  to  add  modern  conveniences,  as  such  ad 
ditions  increase  but  little  the  total  cost.  Many  new  school  buildings 
in  West  Virginia  provide  but  one  cloak  room.  Besides  being  a 
source  of  disorder,  this  arrangement  does  not  give  privacy  to  girl 


FRONT   ELEVATION. 

students  which  the  best  training  requires.  As  suggested  in  Plan  No. 
2,  the  room  marked  "fuel  room"  may  be  used  for  laboratory  work 
or  manual  training. 

Especial  attention  is  called  to  the  well-proportioned,  roomy 
porch.  A  porch  of  this  width  and  length  seems  to  be  a  natural 
part  of  the  building  to  which  it  belongs,  while  the  small  store-box 
porches  tacked  to  many  of  our  school  buildings  seem  to  hold  their 
places  under  protest.  If  the  funds  of  the  district  will  not  justify  a 


32 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


board  of  education  in  carrying  out  this  complete  plan,  the  extra 
rooms  in  front  may  be  started  and  cloak  rooms  provided  in  the 
wings  of  the  porch.  This  will  necessitate  changing  the  entrance  to 
the  center. 


33-8 


5AMTM  5YSTE.A\   Op 
HE.AT1MC,  AMD  VE./STIL ATIO/A 


FLOOR    PLAN    OF    NO.    3. 

This  plan  differs  from  the  others  by  providing  for  bi-lateral  light- 
ing, that  is,  windows  on  two  sides.  Many  object  to  windows  in  the 
rear,  claiming  that  they  make  cross  shadows  on  the  pupils'  work 
and  injure  the  eyes  of  the  teacher  who  must  face  them.  These  ob- 
jections can  be  overcome  by  a  proper  adjustment  of  the  window 
shades. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


33 


Plan  No.  4. 


Courtesy  Holmboe  &  Lafferty,  Architects. 

This  is  an  ideal  one  room  building,  complete  with  one  room, 
heating  and  ventilating  apparatus,  as  successfully  used  at  Perry 
Hollow,  Lambert's  Run,  Garretts  Run,  W.  Va.,  etc.  The  windows 
are  grouped,  a  library  and  storage  room  are  supplied,  and  the  ex- 


terior  design  lifts  the  building  from  the  commonplace,  making  it  an 
ornament  to  any  village  or  farming  district.  While  the  porch  can 
be  eliminated  without  seriously  affecting  the  plan,  it  is  not  to  be  rec- 
ommended, as  the  shelter  provided  is  a  convenience  to  early  arrivals 
in  inclement  weather.  Large  and  well  placed  black-board  space  is 
provided. 

A  building  like  this  one  may  seem  expensive,  but  when  its  dura- 
bility, convenience  and  influence  are  considered,  it  gives  more  for 
each  dollar  invested  than  does  a  cheap,  unattractive,  uncomfort- 
able house.  The  beauty  and  comfortableness  of  such  a  school  home 
will  cause  better  attendance  on  the  part  of  the  pupils  and  better 
work  on  the  part  of  the  teacher.  A  farmer,  carpenter,  clerk,  or  any 
other  workman  cannot  do  a  good  day's  work  without  proper 
tools  and  equipment.  The  same  is  true  of  pupils  and  teachers. 
Lack  of  proper  light,  heat,  desks,  blackboard,  and  equipment  will 
make  the  most  effective  work  impossible.  However,  the  chance  to  do 
more  work  which  such  a  building  affords,  is  not  the  chief  reason  for 
its  construction.  The  influence  it  has  upon  the  habits  and  character 
of  the  pupils  is  well  worth  the  extra  money  expended.  In  many 
communities  the  boys  and  girls  look  upon  the  school  building  as  a 
dingy  prison  and  they  take  as  much  delight  in  abusing  it  with 
knives,  chalk  and  mud  balls,  as  they  would  in  hurting  an  enemy. 
When  the  tax  payers  prove  their  faith  in  boys  and  girls  by  provid- 
ing so  liberally  for  them,  the  pupils  are  sure,  under  the  guidance  of 
a  sensible  teacher,  to  look  with  disapproval  upon  any  careless  one 
who  abuses  the  school  house,  the  pride  of  the  school. 

Most  crimes  are  committed  in  dark  and  dirty  places ;  filthy 
habits  are  natural  in  filthy  places.  People  do  not  clean  the  mud 
from  their  shoes  when  entering  a  muddy  street  or  an  unkept  barn. 
They  do  not  feel  at  ease  with  soiled  clothes  or  rude  habits  in  a  fine 
church  or  home.  Neither  do  boys  and  girls  have  any  inclination  to 
be  neat  in  appearance  when  they  must  step  directly  from  the  road 
into  a  school  room  that  is  as  dirty  as  the  road.  The  outside  beauty, 
the  walk,  the  porch,  the  vestibule  and  the  final  cosy  class  room  of 
the  house  pictured  under  No.  4  will  invite  cleanliness  and  neatness. 
Such  habits  will  be  so  deeply  impressed  during  school  years  that 
they  will  be  carried  through  life.  How  important  then  it  is  to  cast 
such  uplifting  influences  about  the  youth  of  the  country  while  their 
minds  and  souls  are  sensitive  alike  to  good  and  bad  impressions. 
Such  a  building  and  grounds  stand  as  constant  reminders  of  the 
business  judgment,  the  belief  in  schools,  the  neighborhood  pride, 
and  the  liberality  of  the  communities  which  provide  them.  Let 
us  have  more  of  them  in  West  Virginia. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


35 


Plan  No.  5. 


This  simple  plan  is  submitted  for  the  consideration  of  boards  of 
•education  who  wish  to  provide  modern  conveniences  with  as  little 
oost  as  possible.  It  presents  one  important  feature  that  should  be 
much  used  in  school  houses,  viz.,  straight  lines  and  plain  corners. 
The  small  room  on  the  front  where  steps  are  indicated  may  be  used 
.•as  a  kind  of  porch  or  vestibule,  and  the  rest  of  the  extra  room  on 
•side  may  be  used  for  cloak  room  and  library  or  supply  room.  A 
porch  in  front  would  add  much  to  this  building.  This  plan  is 
almost  identical  with  the  one  used  by  Supt.  Shroyer  in  giving  his 
specifications  on  another  page. 


36 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


This  plan,  as  will  be  seen  at  a  glance,  is  intended  for  communities 
where  water  pressure  is  available.  This  condition  often  prevails  on 
the  outskirts  of  towns  and  cities  where  a  one-room  school  is  needed. 
In  many  places  in  West  Virginia  water  pressure  could  be  secured 
for  homes  and  schools  by  utilizing  large  springs  or  mountain 
streams  that  could  be  piped  into  the  buildings.  Under  this  a  small 
cellar,  about  6  x  14  feet  in  size,  holds  the  pressure  tank  and  force 
pump  for  the  water  supply.  The  big  boys  will  take  delight  in 
pumping  up  the  pressure  for  each  day, — it  requires  but  a  few  min- 
utes. It  is  surrounded  by  a  12-inch  concrete  wall  and  has  a  -cement 
floor.  The  tank  has  a  capacity  of  about  350  gallons,  and  is  connect- 
ed with  a  well  through  underground  pipes. 

Plan  No.  6. 


MODEL  RURAL  SCHOOL  HOUSE 


Direct  sunlight  enters  the  class-room  through  the  entry  doors  in. 
the  morning  and  through  the  rear  ground  glass  in  the  afternoon. 
The  children  face  the  east  with  the  light  from  the  left. 

The  fresh  air  vent  is  directly  opposite  the  windows,  so  that  the 
current  follows  the  natural  direction  across  the  room,  down  in  front 
of  the  windows  and  back  across  the  floor  to  the  foul  air  vent.  This 
latter  has  been  arranged  into  a  small  fireplace,  where  a  fire  may  be 
built  en  wet,  murky  days  to  draw  off  the  chili  and  damp  and  aid 
ventilation.  Ordinary  jacketed  stove  or  small  furnace  may  be  used, 
to  heat  such  a  building. 

This  modern  building  cost  about  $1,400. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


37 


•SCHOOL- ROOM 


•SCHOOL-ROOM 


CLOAK     ROOM 


•  FLOOR -PL,  A.  N 


DESICN-FOR-A  -TWO-ROOM- 
•SCHOOL -HOV5E- 


CLOAK    ROOM 


PORCH 


This   plan  provides   for  a  convenient  arrangement  of  hall   and   cloak 
rooms.     The  plan  for  lighting  the  cloak  rooms  is  worthy  of  notice. 


•I  I 


A  well  constructed,  well-kept  two-room  building  at  Metz,  W.  Va.  As 
will  be  seen,  this  building  is  not  constructed  according  to  the  floor  plan 
above. 


38 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


TWO  ROOM  BUILDINGS. 

Two-room  buildings  present  a  few  new  problems  which  should  be 
considered.  The  community  should  feel  that  the  school  house  is- 
the  center  of  community  interest  and  for  that  reason  provision 
should  be  made  for  handling  good-sized  audiences,  unless  the 
neighborhood  is  otherwise  provided  with  a  suitable  hall.  Plan  No. 
2  shows  how  folding  or  sliding  doors  make  it  possible  to  throw 
two  rooms  together  when  the  occasion  demands. 

If  the  building  is  placed  in  a  growing  village  or  community,  the 
plan  should  provide  for  the  possibility  of  adding  more  room. 
Inasmuch  as  no  windows  are  placed  in  the  rear  of  Plan  No.  1,  an 
addition  could  be  made  without  shutting  off  any  light.  The  porch 
and  some  of  the  partitions  shown  in  No.  1  can  be  omitted  if  lack 
of  funds  or  local  needs  make  such  change  advisable.  The  general 
class-room  standards  explained  on  another  page  should  be  adhered 
to  in  planning  two-room  buildings. 

Plan  No.  1. 


TWO    ROOM   FRAME    SCHOOL    BUILDING,    DOLA,    W.    VA.,    HEPZIBAH,    W.    VA., 

ST.  PAUL,  VA.,  ETC. 

A  well-designed  lay-out,  provided  with  excellent  heating  and  ventilating  ar- 
rangement, the  fresh  air  being  brought  from  the  outside  under  the  floor  as  in  the 
one-room  buildings.  Convenient  cloak  rooms,  library  and  storage  rooms  are  pro- 
vided. The  heat  and  vent  rtacks  are  used  on  the  exterior  to  produce  a  very 
pleasing  architectural  effect.  The  gables  are  shingled  and  the  roofs  are  of  slate. 
The  colonial  design  if  appropriate  in  almost  any  community. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


39 


SCHOOL* 


Courtesy  Holmboe  &  Lafferty,  Architects. 
FLOOR  PLAN  OF  BUILDING  DESCRIBED  ON  OPPOSITE  PAGE. 


Plan  No.  2. 


Courtesy  Holmboe  &  Lafferty,  Architects. 

TWO  ROOM  FRAME  SCHOOL  BUILDING,  MARSHVILLE,  W.  VA. 
Designed  to  meet  a  peculiar  condition,  where  it  was  desirable  that  the  rooms 
he  thrown  together  when  the  occasion  demanded  a  large  meeting.  A  very  economi- 
cal plan,  one  flue  accommodating  the  two  rooms.  The  windows  are  grouped,  and 
store  room  IF  provided,  also  large  blackboard  spaces  and  folding  doors  to  separate 
the  rooms.  The  bell  tower  gives  a  decided  school  house  effect. 


Plan  No.  3. 


Courtesy  Holmboe  &  Lafferty,  Architects. 

TT/-O  room,  brick,  stone  foundation,  flat  built-up  composition  roof,  school  building. 
Very  complete  gravity  warm  air  heating  and  ventilating  plant,  girls'  and  boys'  toilets 
in  basement,  a'.d  separate  play  rooms.  Basement  f»~cessible  from  within  and  from 
the  outside.  Oc.tagon  school  rooms  to  facilitate  heating  and  ventilating,  obviating 
sharp  corners  in  which  the  air  may  clog.  Modern  lighting,  six  windows  placed  on 
the  left  side  of  school  ro~;m?,  giving  maximum  black-board  space,  and  very  con- 
veniently arranged  cloak  rooms.  Supply  closet  for  teacher  in  each  room.  Hand- 
some, dignified  exterior,  with  brick  center  feature  for  bell. 


42  SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


THREE  AND  FOUR  ROOM  BUILDINGS. 

By  reading  the  requirements  for  buildings  found  in  other  articles 
of  this  book,  those  who  wish  to  plan  buildings  of  three  or  more 
rooms  will  find  sufficient  information  on  most  points.  No  plans  for 
three-room  buildings  are  given,  as  no  ideal  ones  were  available  at 
the  time  this  pamphlet  was  being  prepared.  By  adding  one  stand- 
ard room  as  a  ' '  T  "  or  "  L  "  to  one  of  the  plans  for  two-room  build- 
ings, a  suitable  plan  for  three  rooms  can  be  easily  made.  In  the 
construction  of  four-room  buildings  of  two  stories,  a  few  new  prob- 
lems are  presented. 

Entrance.  "As  a  rule  it  may  be  said  that  entrances  should  be 
wide,  equipped  with  two  doors,  and  should  lead  directly  to  the  stair- 
ways and  corridors.  Doors  should  be  hung  to  swing  outward  and 
should  be  equipped  with  latches  that  are  lockable  on  the  outside 
only.  The  Massachusetts  law  requires  twenty  inches  of  door  width 
for  every  one  hundred  pupils  and  not  less  than  four  feet  to  each 
entrance. ' '  A  vestibule  cut  off  by  double  swinging  doors,  and  pro- 
vided with  tile  or  cement  floor,  will  accommodate  the  pupils  who 
chance  to  arrive  ahead  of  the  teacher.  Such  a  vestibule  will  do 
much  to  prevent  the  ' '  tracking  in  "  of  mud  and  snow. 

Stairways,  Many  architects,  school  officers  and  teachers  seem 
to  disregard  the  constant  danger  to  pupils,  especially  girls,  in 
climbing  steep  stairways  with  narrow  tread.  Too  much  stair  climb- 
ing is  likely  to  cause  permanent  injury  to  girls  of  high  school  age, 
hence  the  building  and  organization  should  reduce  the  danger  to 
the  minimum.  The  staircase  should  be  wide — not  less  than  five  feet ; 
the  tread  should  be  about  13  inches  wide ;  the  risers  should  not  be 
more  than  6%  inches  in  graded  schools  and  7  inches  in  high  schools. 
The  treads  should  be  provided  with  rubber  or  metallic  safety  pads. 
The  railing  should  be  very  simple  and  thoroughly  substantial,  as  it 
is  constantly  subject  to  some  strain.  Round  oak  about  3  inches  in 
diameter  makes  a  railing  both  beautiful  and  substantial.  Long 
flights  of  stairs  should  be  broken  by  roomy  landings  which  provide 
for  a  change  of  direction  or  rest.  Steep  stairways  are  abominable. 
Wherever  possible  there  should  be  a  stairway  on  each  side  of  the 
hall  and  the  whole  staircase  should  be  fireproof. 

Such  buildings  need  halls  wide  enough  to  allow  cloak  rooms  to 
project  into  the  hall,  and  open  above  so  that  the  vapor  from  damp 
clothing  will  not  enter  the  school  room.  Little  rooms  and  nooks  for 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


43 


no  purpose,  dark  basements,  and  attics  stored  with  trash  should  be 
carefully  omitted. 


Courtesy  Holmboe  &  Lafferty,  Architects. 
FOUR  ROOM  SCHOOL  BUILDING  AT  ELKHOEN,  W.  VA. 

A  handsome  and  much  complimented  four  room  brick  school 
building,  designed  to  show  the  groups  of  windows  on  the  main 
front.  The  corners  of  these  school  rooms  are  clipped  to  facilitate 
the  heating  and  ventilating.  The  girls'  and  boys'  toilets  are  placed 
on  the  second  floor  over  the  hallway.  This  absolutely  precludes  any 
possibility  of  obnoxious  odors  permeating  the  building,  and  does  not 
impose  excessive  stair  climbing  on  the  second  story  pupils,  as  would 
toilets  placed  in  the  basement.  This  equalizes  the  distance  traversed 
to  the  toilet  rooms,  compelling  scholars  from  the  first  floor  to  ascend 
one  flight  of  stairs,  while  those  on  the  second  floor,  being  already 
elevated,  find  it  very  convenient.  Abundant  light  is  furnished  by 
windows  grouped  at  one  side  of  the  room,  and  large  black-board 
spaces  are  provided.  In  this  building  a  12-foot  gymnasium  occu- 
pies the  entire  basement. 


44 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


Courtesy  Holmboe  &  Lafferty,  Architects. 

FLOOR  PLAN  OF  BUILDING  AT  ELKHORX. 
Described  on  preceding  page. 


-4--ROCJ2M.BKKK.  SCHOOL  ELDG*-5 


Courtesy  Holmboe  &  Lafferty,  Architects. 
FLOOR  PLAX  or  FOUR  ROOM  BUILDING  AT  MORGANTOWN. 
Described  on  opposite  page. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


45 


Courtesy  Holmboe  &  Lafferty,  Architects. 
POUR  ROOM  BUILDING  AT  MORGANTOWN,  W.  VA. 

Four  Rooms,  Brick.  Warm  air  heating  and  ventilating.  Octa- 
gon class  rooms,  and  group  window  lighting.  One  of  the  principal 
points  of  advantage  in  this  plan  is  the  heating  and  ventilating  ar- 
rangement, obviating  galvanized  iron  heat  flues  to  the  ventilating 
stacks.  The  excellent  ventilation  secured  by  this  plan  is  obtained 
by  the  aspiration  produced  by  the  heat  pipes  in  the  vent  stacks. 
This  successfully  draws  the  foul  air  from  the  floor  uf  the  school 
room.  The  heat  is  introduced  6^/2  feet  above  the  floor.  The  conven- 
ient arrangement  of  the  cloak  rooms  secures  for  them  excellent  ven- 
tilation, also  at  the  same  time  adding  materially  to  the  architec- 
tural effect  of  the  front. 

This  building  lends  itself  admirab'y  to  the  addition  of  four  more 
rooms  of  like  design  in  the  rear,  the  octagons  giving  an  ideal  place 
to  attach  future  building  by  secluding  the  joint.  The  same  stair- 
way will  answer  for  the  future  four  rooms.  The  front  is  very  hand- 
some and  distinguished  looking.  The  stone  base  up  to  the  window 
sills  adds  materially  to  the  appearance. 

Supplementary  exterior  treatment  is  given,  showing  the  slate 
roof,  (Tudor-Gothic  design),  exactly  accommodating  the  same  plan. 


46 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


r 


LARGE  SCHOOL  BUILDINGS. 

This  book  is  intended  primarily  for  the  guidance  of  boards  of 
education  in  the  construction  of  buildings  in  the  rural  districts, 
where  but  few  large  buildings  are  needed.  For  this  reason,  no  at- 
tempt will  be  made  to  give  detailed  directions  and  specifications  for 
large  city  buildings.  However,  by  reference  to  the  articles  on 
smaller  buildings  and  high  schools,  those  desiring  to  plan  for  build- 
ings of  eight  or  more  rooms  will  find  standards  by  which  to  measure 
their  fundamental  features.  One  of  the  most  difficult  problems  in 


FIRST  WARD  BUILDING,  ELKINS,  W.  VA. 

A  building  with   fine   architectural   lines   and   artistic   substantial 

appearance. 

the  construction  of  such  buildings  is  the  provision  for  adequate 
light.  An  attempt  to  make  such  provision  has  developed  the  "L," 
the  "T,"  the  "U,"  and  the  "H"  styles.  The  latter  shape  is  es- 
pecially desirable,  as  it  provides  for  a  great  amount  of  light  ex- 
posure. 

Too  often  school  officers  and  architects,  in  planning  school  build- 
ings, plan  "from  without  in"  when  all  school  architecture  should  be 
planned  "from  within  out,"  that  is,  the  pupil  and  class  room  re- 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE.  47 

quirements  should  be  units  for  first  consideration.  Several  West 
Virginia  buildings  will  be  shown  on  the  following  pages  and  will 
offer  many  suggestive  features. 


r 


An  examination  of  the  floor  plans  of  this  building  which  are 
found  en  the  following  page  will  reveal  many  d3sirable  features. 
As  will  be  seen,  the  cloak  rooms  extending  into  the  hall  ar3  open 
above,  thus  permitting  the  dampness  from  the  clothing  to  escape 
into  the  hallway.  Although  the  building  is  quite  large,  the  ar- 
rangement and  grouping  of  windows  are  such  as  to  give  ample 
lighting  in  all  of  the  rooms  and  at  the  same  time  preserve  the  laws  of 
lighting  as  to  the  direction  frcm  which  it  comes.  Attention  should 
be  called  to  the  two  entrances  which  makes  it  possible  to  empty 
all  class  rooms  in  a  very  short  time  and  without  confusion.  On 
the  second  floor  is  a  large  .study  hall  which  can  be  changed  into 
school  rooms  in  case  the  growth  of  the  school  should  demand 
such  an  arrangement. 


48 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


:fcL_ 

r  •  -  -««**t 

Jit^iM"*—* » -  --  : I 


«  » 

33~Tr '  SI  IS*  te 


I 


-IJL    j 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


49 


50 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


L.  ^—r-^^r*^  i 

JTZ                                                                              "      I 

P^v^^ 
!         H 

-/~^\   sr  •'-"**  — 

t 
td 

";" 

t 

i;;;:';           '  '     ^'-:'-"          _^±  :•'• 

1  1 

Flcor  plan  of  building  on  page  49,  showing  cloak-rooms  extending 
into  the  hall  and  opening  above,  thus  allowing  the  dampness  from  the 
clothing  to  escape  into  the  hallway.  Other  desirable  features  of  this  plan 
are  self-evident. 


PUBLIC  SCHOOL,  ELM  GROVE,  W.  VA. 

This  picture  is  shown  to  call  attention  to  the  artistic  front  lawn  and 
the  roomy  play-ground  in  the  rear. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


51 


r 


Courtesy  Holmboe  &  Lafferty,  Architects. 
ACADEMY  HIGH  SCHOOL. 

Of  this  building  the  architects  say:  "A  school  building  with  sixteen 
rooms,  having  an  auditorium  on  the  first  floor  with  balcony  opening  from 
the  second  floor.  The  Auditorium  complete  with  dressing  rooms,  stage, 
exits,  overhead  light,  etc.  Semi-fireproof  construction.  All  brick  bearing 
partitions,  windows  grouped  for  one  side  lighting,  and  mechanical  sys- 
tem of  heating  and  ventilating.  Manual  training  rooms  in  the  basement. 
Girls'  and  boys'  toilets  and  girls'  and  boys'  recreation  rooms.  This  school 
of  Tudor-Gothic  design  lends  itself  admirably  to  such  a  purpose,  giving 
the  t^ilding  a  decidedly  collegiate  appearance,  while  at  the  same  time 
being  very  economical,  not  requiting  a  wealth  of  trimming  to  obtain  a 
banctecme  effect." 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


PUBLIC  SCHOOL,  HINTON.  W.  VA. 


BIGLEY  SCHOOL,  CHARLESTON.  W.  VA. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


53 


MCKINLEY  SCHOOL,  PARKERSBUBG,  W.  VA. 
One  of  the  handsomest  school  buildings  in  West  Virginia. 


BUFF  SCHOOL,  HUNTINGTOX,  W.  VA. 


54 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


HIGH   SCHOOL  BUILDINGS. 

Special  Features. 

\ 
A  great  many  of  the  high  schools  of  the  state  have  no  separate 

building  set  apart  for  the  high  school  work.  The  plan  of  combin- 
ing grades  and  high  school  in  one  building  is  quite  necessary  in 
many  communities  and  in  such  cases  some  of  the  special  features 
mentioned  below  should  be  provided.  Wherever  possible  a  dis- 
tinct building  for  high  school  use  should  be  constructed,  as  this 
will  solve  many  problems  of  discipline  and  stand  as  a  constant  re- 
minder to  the  boys  and  girls  tha.t  something  higher  is  in  reach. 


A  WELL  ARRANGED  STUDY  HALL. 

Assembly  Room.  In  many  of  our  smaller  high  schools  a  preten- 
tious assembly  room  would  be  out  of  place.  In  such  schools,  one 
class  room  may  be  made  larger  than  the  regulation  size  and  used 
as  a  study  hall  and  assembly  room  for  small  audiences.  A  plan  by 
which  two  rooms  can  be  thrown  together  as  shown  in  one  of  the 
two-room  plans  is  still  better.  Where  high  schools  must  be  placed 
on  sloping  ground  a  part  of  the  basement  may  be  fitted  up  for  a 
light,  roomy  assembly  hall  with  entrance  on  lower  side  of  the 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


building.  Such  an  idea  is  well  illustrated  in  the  First  Ward  build- 
ing in  Fairmont.  With  a  little  extra  expense  on  some  styles  of  build- 
ings, a  part  of  the  third  story  may  be  converted  into  a  good  sized 
hall.  Cameron  and  Adamston  have  such  a  plan  well  worked  out. 

The  above  suggestions  are  made  to  fit  peculiar  needs.  A  quota- 
tion from  *  'School  Architecture",  a  valuable  little  book  published 
by  the  American  School  Board  Journal  of  Milwaukee,  well  de- 
scribes an  ideal  assembly  hall. 

"The  assembly  room  is  intended  to  accommodate  all  the  pupils 
of  the  school  at  one  sitting.  The  consensus  of  opinion  now  favors 
the  ground  floor  assembly  hall.  Several  advantages  are  gained  by 
placing  the  assembly  hall  on  the  ground  floor.  Primarily  the  hall 
thus  placed  is  safer  in  case  of  fire  or  danger.  Light  can  be  had 
from  above  and  from  either  side  wall.  Stair  climbing  and  unnec- 
essary disturbance  in  gathering  classes  is  avoided.  It  is  most  con- 
venient for  evening  lectures  in  which  the  general  public  may  par- 
take. The  stage  must  be  proportionate  to  the  entire  whole,  with 
anterooms  on  either  side.  At  least  two  exits  should  be  provided. " 

Gymnasiums.  Before  describing  an  indoor  gymnasium,  we  wish 
to  call  attention  to  the  fact  that  the  best  place  for  a  gymnasium  is 
out  of  doors.  In  many  of  the  small  high  schools  of  this  state  lack 
of  room  and  funds  makes  it  impossible  to  provide  a  modern  gymna- 
sium, but  most  of  our  schools  have  enough  ground  for  tennis  court, 
running  track,  basket  ball,  trapeze,  horse,  etc.,  and  boards  of  edu- 
cation should  consider  it  their  duty  to  assist  the  school  in  securing 
such  apparatus.  At  this  point  a  quotation  from  Supt.  Hyatt  of 
California  suggests  itself: 

"It  is  common  nowadays  to  emphasize  the  value  of  plays  and 
sports  rather  than  the  more  formal  gymnastic  work.  It  is  well  to 
remember,  however,  that  the  exercises  of  the  gymnasium  have 
their  place,  too.  Spontaneous  play,  for  instance,  does  not  straight- 
en stooped  shoulders,  give  habits  of  good  breathing  or  correct  par- 
ticular bodily  defects.  Some  such  drills  as  that  above  are  splendid 
things  for  young  people.  The  occupations  of  civilized  life  seem 
all  conspiring  to  hamper  and  contract  the  lungs.  To  dig,  to  study, 
to  read,  to  wash  dishes,  to  nurse  babes,  to  keep  books,  to  write,  to  do 
almost  anything,  we  must  droop  the  shoulders  and  shrink  the  chest. 
Unused  organs  grow  weak  and  invite  disease.  Consumption  is  the 
disease  of  civilization.  One  in  seven  of  us  die  of  it.  How  neces- 


56  SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 

sary,  then,  for  the  schools  to  do  all  they  can  against  this  condition. 
What  a  valuable  thing  for  a  young  person  to  acquire  the  habit  of 
deep  breathing.  How  important  it  is  for  every  teacher  to  give 
breathing  exercises  and  to  use  every  other  device  he  can  that  will 
broaden  the  chests,  expand  the  lungs,  increase  the  breathing  ca- 
pacity and  form  good  habits  in  regard  to  these  things." 

Some  such  exercises  should  be  encouraged  in  the  class  rooms. 
Many  school  buildings  in  the  state  have  unused,  unsanitary  base- 
ments, that  could  be  cleaned  out,  deepened,  lighted  and  equipped 
for  play  room  or  gymnasium  work  during  bad  weather. 

For  the  consideration  of  boards  of  education  that  wish  to  build 
a  modern  gymnasium,  the  following  standards  are  suggested: 

The  gymnasium  should  not  be  on  the  upper  floors  as  the  noise  is 
objectionable  and  the  rough  play  injures  plastering  and  fixtures 
below.  For  the  same  reason,  it  should  not  join  the  laboratories. 
The  first  floor,  or  a  simple,  separate  frame  building  joining  the 
rear  of  the  main  building  by  a  covered  porch  is  the  best  location, 
although  a  well-lighted  basement  is  not  objectionable.  The  plan 
of  the  high  school  building  often  makes  it  possible  to  raise  the 
floor  of  the  assembly  hall  and  thus  provide  greater  height  for  the 
gymnasium  below. 

The  gymnasium  should  be  oblong,  similar  to  the  regular  basket- 
ball floor.  It  should  be  well  lighted  with  windows  along  the  side. 
The  bottom  of  these  windows  should  be  about  6  feet  above  the 
floor  in  order  to  allow  room  for  wall  apparatus  and  should  be  ar- 
ranged for  much  ventilation.  Each  student  should  have  about  40 
square  feet  of  floor  space.  This  will  often  necessitate  a  schedule 
of  hours  for  different  classes.  The  floor  should  be  of  oak  or  maple 
in  very  narrow  strips  and  so  fitted  and  oiled  as  to  prevent  accumu- 
lation of  dust.  "German  authorities  recommend  a  floor  of  hard 
asphalt  set  in  concrete  and  covered  with  linoleum.  This  combina- 
tion is  firm  and  yet  elastic,  nearly  noiseless,  dust  proof,  cheap  and 
easily  renewed."  Dressing  rooms  provided  with  lockers  and  show- 
er baths  should  adjoin  the  gymnasium. 

Laboratories.  No  high  school  can  make  the  claim  of  being  stand- 
ard and  up-to-date  unless  it  is  provided  with  some  kind  of  laborato- 
ries. Such  subjects  as  biology,  agriculture,  physics  and  chemistry 
are  of  little  value  unless  some  provision  is  made  for  laboratory 
work.  In  the  smaller  high  schools  one  room  will  serve  most  of 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE.  57 

these  purposes.  If  possible,  this  room  should  have  a  tile  floor,  and 
plenty  of  light  including  a  sky-light.  The  windows  should  be  pro- 
vided with  shutters  or  shades  capable  of  shutting  out  all  light  when 
a  dark  room  is  needed.  Water  tanks  and  gas  burners  on  heavy 
tables  at  right  angles  to  the  windows  are  essential,  but  no  at- 
tempt to  describe  apparatus  is  in  order  here.  Cases  with  locks 
should  be  provided  for  delicate  apparatus.  Much  of  the  simple 
apparatus  should  be  made  by  pupils,  teachers,  black-smiths  and 
carpenters.  The  rest  should  be  purchased  for  specific  purposes 
tinder  the  advice  of  the  science  teacher.  In  no  case  should  large 
sets  of  apparatus  be  purchased.  In  large  high  schools  the  different 
laboratories  should  surround  the  lecture  or  class  room.  This  sci- 
ence class  room  should  have  raised  seats  and  a  well  equipped  table 
where  the  teacher  may  make  demonstrations  before  the  whole 
class.  There  should  be  a  closed  case  or  room  for  supplies.  The 
teacher  should  carry  the  key  for  this  room. 

The  Principal's  Room  or  Office.  To  provide  for  the  principal 
or  superintendent  a  well  furnished,  large  office  with  desk,  filing 
cases,  typewriter,  telephone,  speaking  tubes  and  other  modern 
conveniences  is  one  of  the  best  ways  for  a  board  of  education  to 
economize,  for  the  increase  in  the  amount  and  kind  of  work  the 
principal  can  do  under  such  conditions  will  soon  more  than  pay 
for  the  extra  cost.  This  room  should  be  near  the  entrance  and 
command  a  view  of  as  many  halls  and  stairways  as  possible. 

Teachers'  Room.  Where  many  teachers  work  in  the  same  build- 
ing, there  should  be  a  cozy  room  with  table,  easy  chairs,  lavato- 
ries, etc.,  where  teachers  may  go  for  rest  or  consultation.  The  win- 
dows of  the  room  should  open  upon  a  pleasing  view. 

Other  Special  Rooms.  Other  special  rooms  needed  according  to 
the  size  of  the  school  and  peculiar  local  conditions  are,  art  room, 
library,  manual  training  and  domestic  science  rooms,  storage  room, 
and  janitor's  room.  As  these  require  no  peculiar  architecture,  they 
will  not  be  discussed  in  this  connection.  The  same  reasons  that 
cause  people  to  provide  special  rooms  in  their  homes  for  kitchen, 
dining  room,  library,  parlor,  etc.,  should  cause  school  authorities 
to  provide  special  school  rooms  and  buildings  for  special  purposes. 
The  school  has  outgrown  the  idea  that  it  is  a  place  for  reciting 
lessons  from  books  and  nothing  else.  In  many  places  teachers, 
pupils,  and  organizations  furnish  the  special  rooms  without  extra 
cost  to  the  taxpayers. 


58 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


DISTRICT  HIGH  SCHOOL,  FAYETTE  COUNTY, 


DISTRICT  HIGH  SCHOOL,  MANNINGTON,  W.  VA. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


59 


THE  BEAVER  POXD  DISTRICT  HIGH  SCHOCL  IN  THE  CITY  OF 
BLUEFIELD,  W.  VA. 

This  is  the  largest,  best  equipped  and  most  modern  district  high  school 
building  in  the  state.  A  glance  at  this  picture  is  sufficient  to  convince  the 
reader  that  this  building  conforms  to  the  general  standards  of  school  ar- 
chitecture, although  the  lack  of  a  suitable  lot  makes  it  impossible  to  show 
the  building  to  the  best  advantage.  However,  the  lack  of  outside  play- 
ground is  offset  by  unusual  gymnasium  provisions.  Almost  all  the  lower 
story  is  devoted  to  a  gymnasium  containing  a  standard  basket-ball  floor, 
running  track,  wall  and  floor  apparatus,  shower  baths,  dressing  rooms 
and  audience  galleries.  On  the  same  floor  is  a  commodious  room  for  do- 
mestic science  and  manual  training. 

Among  other  special  features  are  offices  for  superintendent,  princi- 
pal, stenographer  and  board  of  education.  The  building  is  equipped 
throughout  with  classroom  telephones  which  connect  with  the  offices  of 
superintendent  and  principal.  Ample  provisions  are  made  for  labora- 
tories, library,  special  and  regular  class  rooms.  The  auditorium  has  a 
regular  seating  capacity  for  nine  hundred. 


60 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


SlSTERSVILLE    Hldll     S( 


CIIAKLESTOX  HIGH  SCHOOL. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


61 


mn  JIM 


Courtesy  Supt.  Edward  Hyatt,  California. 
KERX  COUNTY  HIGH  SCHOOL. 


Courtesy  Supt.  Edicard  Hyatt,  California. 
PROPOSED  PARADISE  SCHOOL. 

Such  school  buildings  as     these  are  in  keeping  with  California's  wealth 
and  beauty. 


62  SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 

SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE  -THE  CLASS  ROOM. 
F.  L.  BURDETTE,  Superintendent  of  Clarksburg  Public  Schools. 

In  providing  school  buildings  for  a  community,  boards  of  edu- 
cation should  have  in  view  the  immediate  needs  of  the  community 
and  the  probable  demand  for  additional  room  for  some  years  to 
come.  The  location,  size,  and  arrangements  of  a  building  should 
be  such  as  to  make  it  as  nearly  ideal  as  possible  for  at  least  a  score 
of  years.  Should  the  community  be  one  whose  growth  would  pre- 
clude the  possibility  of  a  building  that  would  accommodate  all  the 
school  children  for  so  long  a  time,  at  least  its  location,  style  and 
inside  arrangements  should  be  as  nearly  faultless  as  circumstances 
will  permit. 

The  local  school  building  should  embody  the  best  ideas  in  beauty 
and  dignity  of  architecture  to  be  found  anywhere  in  the  vicinity. 
The  style  should  be  regular,  without  a  mixture  of  straight  and 
curved  lines,  rounded  and  pointed  arches,  lofty  towers,  high  or 
Mansard  roofs,  and  many  sharply  broken  walls.  Such  things  d3- 
tract  from  the  simple  dignity  of  a  building,  and  from  its  beauty. 
On  the  other  hand  they  increase  materially  the  cost  and  add  little 
or  nothing  to  the  utility  of  a  house.  A  building  constructed  on 
the  more  classic  lines  costs  less,  serves  better  the  school's  needs,  and 
gives  to  the  public  a  model  of  the  better  style  of  architecture.  No 
considerable  building  should  ever  be  erected  except  after  the 
plans  of  a  competent  architect. 

The  immediate  and  constant  advantages  of  a  well  constructed 
school  building  come  especially  from  the  inside  arrangements.  The 
size  and  shape  of  rooms,  amount  and  arrangement  of  light,  method 
and  efficiency  of  heating  and  ventilating,  and  the  general  sanitary 
arrangements  in  the  building,  all  necessarily  to  come  within  a 
reasonable  cost,  are  the  real  problems  to  solve.  A  suitable  plan 
for  a  school  building  embodies  the  best  possible  of  all  these.  But 
the  purpose  of  this  article  is  not  to  discuss  at  length  any  of  those 
important  matters.  Only  the  class  room  and  its  necessary  parts 
will  be  considered,  further  here. 

Size  of  Class  Room.. — The  class  room  is  where  the  teacher  and 
pupils  sit  and  work  from  day  to  day;  it  is  their  constant  workshop. 
It  is  not  possible  to  foretell  at  the  time  of  building  just  how  many 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE.  63 

and  what  age  of  pupils  must  at  some  time  be  assigned  to  a  particular 
room.  So  the  arrangement  of  the  room  should  be  the  best  in  a  gen- 
eral and  special  way  that  circumstances  will  allow.  For  general 
use,  rooms  should  be  about  32  feet  long,  28  feet  wide,  and  not  less 
than  13  feet  high.  In  rural  communities  where  the  number  of 
children  will  surely  be  small,  the  width  might  be  reduced  to  24 
feet.  There  is  no  danger  of  too  much  room  within  these  limits, 
less  might  lead  to  over-crowding  at  any  time. 

Windows. — The  window  space  should  be  from  one-fifth  to  one- 
fourth  the  floor  space  of  the  room,  the  windows  should  be  3  feet  from 
the  door,  should  extend  up  close  to  the  ceiling,  and  should  be  pro- 
vided with  transoms  adjustable  by  strong  lifters.  If  light  is  provid- 
ed from  only  one  side  of  the  room,  that  greater  amount  of  window 
space  is  necessary.  In  order  to  properly  diffuse  light  throughout  the 
rooms  the  arrangement  of  windows  on  two  sides,  left  and  rear, 
is  better.  "Where  a  room  is  provided  with  windows  on  these  two 
sides,  it  is  easier  to  secure  enough  light  at  all  times  without  any 
group  of  pupils  receiving  any  large  amount  of  it  directly  in  the 
face.  Grouping  of  windows  gives  a  good  architectural  effect,  but 
prevents  the  best  distribution  of  light,  and  should  not  be  encour- 
aged. Many  persons  advocate  the  arrangement  of  windows  on  only 
the  left  side ;  but  this  lighting  from  only  one  side  generally  fails 
to  distribute  light  evenly  to  all  parts  of  the  room. 

Blackboards. — Blackboards  should  be  placed  in  available  space 
on  two  sides  of  the  room,  front  and  right.  For  the  possible  changes 
in  the  size  of  pupils  assigned  to  a  room,  the  blackboards  should  be 
4  feet  wide  and  placed  26  inches  from  the  floor.  Natural  slate  is 
the  best  material  to  use.  To  increase  the  available  space  for  the 
boards,  it  is  advisable  to  have  only  one  entrance  from  the  school 
room  to  the  cloak  room.  Another  entrance  to  the  cloak  room  should 
then  be  provided  from  the  hall-way. 

Cloak  Rooms. — The  cloak  rooms  should  join  the  class  room, 
should  be  provided  with  two  entrances,  should  have  ample  light, 
heat  and  ventilation,  and  should  be  separated  from  both  the  hall- 
way and  school  room  by  closed  doors.  Doors  into  the  class  rooms 
should  open  in,  so  as  to  leave  them  under  the  control  of  the  teach- 
er in  charge.  School  room  floors  should  always  be  of  hard  wood, 
which  is  more  sanitary  and  more  easily  kept  clean. 

Watts  and  Ceilings. — The  walls  and  ceilings  of  school  rooms 
should  be  smooth,  so  as  to  lessen  the  accumulation  of  dust,  and 


64  SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 

they  should  be  tinted  in  a  color  agreeable  to  the  eye.  The  best 
color  for  the  tinting  varies  somewhat  with  the  amount  and  kind 
of  light. 

The  time  has  come  when  we  can  and  should  provide  more  at- 
tractive, more  serviceable,  and  more  durable  school  buildings.  Too* 
little  has  been  done  and  is  now  being  done  along  these  lines  for  a 
saner  school  policy.  We  should  be  compelled  by  the  force  of 
public  opinion,  and  by  law  as  in  some  other  states,  to  awaken  to 
these  needs. 

THE  INTERIOR  DECORATIONS  OF  SCHOOLS. 

(Prom   School   Architecture    and    School   Improvement   in    Cali- 
fornia.   Used  by  permission  of  State  Supt.  Edward  Hyatt.) 

This  keen  and  scholarly  article  is  by  Walter  J.  Kenyan,  a  Cali- 
fornia, schoolmaster.  It  is  taken  from  the  School  Review,  No- 
vember, 1906. 

Our  graded  school  requires  of  its  pupils  a  classroom  attendance 
of  eight  thousand  hours.  This  is  a  heavy  tribute  to  levy  upon  the 
period  of  childhood,  and  it  may  well  purchase  other  things  for  the 
pupil  than  an  acquisition  merely  of  those  weapons  of  traffic  dear 
to  the  utilitarian's  heart — the  so-called  rudiments.  It  is  the  pres- 
ent purpose  to  discuss  some  of  those  silent  influences  which,  with- 
out interference  with  the  traditional  purpose  of  the  school,  make 
for  a  richer  childhood  and  a  better  community. 

The  first  of  these  concerns  the  color  effects  of  the  classroom. 
When  a  competent  architect  plans  a  schoolhouse,  he  presumes  of 
course  that,  given  due  time  for  drying  out,  the  plaster  walls  will  be 
appropriately  tinted  or  papered,  and  in  such  tones  as  will  give  a 
harmonious  color  unity  to  the  whole  room.  It  is  noticeable,  how- 
ever, that  in  the  average  American  schoolhouse  this  ideal  is  sel- 
dom consummated.  We  rush  our  furnishings  in,  and  the  painters 
and  plasterers  have  hardly  packed  up  their  tools  before  the  classes 
are  settled  in  an  established  school  routine.  And  as  for  those  glar- 
ing white  walls,  we  "first  endure,  then  pity,  then  embrace,''  finally 
forgetting  that  the  plan  was  ever  otherwise. 

There  are  reasons,  however,  beyond  a  mere  aesthetic  preference, 
why  the  schoolroom  walls  should  not  be  left  white.  It  is  the  com- 
mon testimony  of  physicians  that  the  glaring  whitewash  aggra- 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE.  65 

vates  nervous  afflictions  and  injures  the  eyes.  Many  a  mother 
diagnoses  her  girl's  nervous  headache  as  a  case  of  overstudy,  when 
it  is  in  reality  a  product  of  five  hours'  exposure  to  the  harsh,  blind- 
ing glare  of  the  schoolroom  walls.  And  many  a  boy  is  condemned 
as  a  wickedly  disposed  nuisance,  when  he  merely  exhibits  a  nervous 
irritation  which  a  proper  color  scheme  will  abate.  A  well-known 
Massachusetts  physician,  Dr.  Myles  Stan  dish,  of  Boston,  says: 

I  have  often  seen  children  immediately  and  permanently  recover 
from  a  persistent  recurring  diseased  condition  of  the  eyes  when  re- 
moved from  a  school  room  with  white  walls,  and  sent 
elsewhere  to  school  or  kept  at  home,  where  the  walls 
are  tinted.  The  principal  color  of  the  walls  should  be 
of  an  even  tone,  so  that  the  amount  of  light  reflected 
will  be  the  same  from  all  parts,  of  the  surface,  as  waving 
or  clouded  effects  are  very  trying  to  sensitive  eyes.  Any  color  may 
be  placed  in  its  proper  position  with  regard  to  its  safety  for  school 
room  walls  by  remembering  the  general  rule  with  regard  to  the 
sensitiveness  of  the  eye  to  the  colors  of  the  spectrum,  which  is,  that 
the  nearer  the  color  is  to  the  red  end  of  the  spectrum,  the  more 
irritating  it  is  to  the  eyes ;  and  the  nearer  the  color  is  tc  the  blue 
end  of  the  spectrum,  the  easier  it  is  to  the  eyes,  with  the  single  ex- 
ception that  the  extreme  violet  rays  also  are  irritating. 

From  this  it  will  be  seen  that  red  and  all  its  derivatives  should 
be  rigidly  excluded,  and  orange  also  is  nearly  as  bad,  while  yellow 
should  never  be  taken  by  preference.  Greens  and  blues  are  abso- 
lutely safe  colors,  and  it  is  not  at  all  necessary  that  the  coldrs 
should  be  pronounced.  The  depth  of  the  color  would  be  made  de- 
pendent upon  the  amount  of  light  coming  in  at  the  windows,  and 
upon  its  quality,  as,  for  instance,  whether  the  windows  have  a 
northern  or  southern  exposure,  whether  the  sun's  rays  can  come 
directly  into  the  room  when  the  sun  sinks  low  in  the  heavens  in 
the  middle  of  a  winter  afternoon,  and  other  surrounding  circum- 
stances of  each  individual  room. 

The  color  of  the  ceiling  of  a  school  room  is  fully  as  important 
as  the  color  of  the  walls,  particularly  when  there  is  any  amount 
of  reflected  light. 

All  I  have  said  with  regard  to  the  colon*  of  the  walls  is  doubly 
true  when  applied  to  the  window  shades,  and  this  fact  should  al- 
ways be  taken  into  consideration  in  furnishing  and  decorating  a 
schoolroom. 


66  SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 

: , 

Medical  science  is  constantly  finding  new  and  positive  evidence 
of  the  pathological  effects  of  color.  And  it  rests  with  any  of  us  to 
make  simple  experiments  which  will  show  conclusively  the  influ- 
ence of  color  upon  the  emotions.  Look  through  a  blue  glass,  and 
we  see  a  sad,  unhopeful  prospect,  in  the  midst  of  which  only  the 
utmost  exertion  of  will-power  can  sustain  a  cheerful  mood.  Look 
through  a  red  glass,  and  the  reverse  feeling  is  aroused.  Thle  out- 
look is  one  of  exaggerated  sunshine,  which  stimulates  the  imagina- 
tion, induces  a  sanguine  mood,  and  suggests  action.  The  blue-glass 
craze  of  the  seventies  was  an  incident  which  fore-shadowed  the  wide 
employment  of  color  as  a  remedial  agent. 

We  are  thus  in  possession  of  a  more  or  less  definite  knowledge  of 
the  pathology  of  color.  We  know  that  red  is  stimulating,  irritat- 
ing, unrestful.  We  know  that  blue  is  quieting,  but  also  depressing. 
Since  the  pnpil  of  the  elementary  school  spends  eight  thousand 
hours  in  actual  attendance  in  the  classroom,  it  is  of  the  highest 
importance  to  give  him  a  color  environment  which  will  not,  on  the 
one  hand,  be  a  source  of  depression  and  melancholy,  nor,  011  the 
other,  an  agent  of  excessive  nervous  stimulation. 

We  have  such  a  color  in  green  of  the  quieter  sort.  There  is  a 
whole  gamut  of  green,  running  from  light  apple  down  through 
the  stone-grceris,  or  "dried  pea, "  to  the  deep,  rich  olives.  This  se- 
ries is  perfectly  adapted  to  the  requirements  of  interior  tinting, 
either  for  home  or  for  school.  The  distinction  is  often  mad-3  be- 
tween a  north  and  south  room,  reddish  buffs  and  terra-cottas  be- 
ing recommended  for  the  former.  This  distinction  is  not  vital, 
however,  and  we  always  approach  the  danger  line  as  we  move  t<>- 
ward  the  red  end  of  the  spectrum.  One  of  the  most  delightful 
school  buildings  it  has  been  my  gdod  fortune  to  visit  is  tinted 
throughout,  north  and  south  rooms  alike,  in  low  stone-green.  An- 
other building  in  the  same  city  is  tinted  in  blue — the  relic  of  a 
former  regime — and  the  effect  is  so  depressing  that  one  experiences 
a  feeling  of  relief  and  renewed  joy  on  once  regaining  the  outer  air. 

A  combination  beyond  further  desire  is  to  be  had  by  coloring  the 
wainscoting  and  woodwork  a  deep  olive,  the  walls  up  to  th-3  mold- 
ing a  middle  sage-green,  and  above  that,  the  walls  and  ceiling  a 
lighter  and  neutral  stone-green ;  this  combination,  of  course,  with 
the  real  slate  board.  It  goes  without  saying  that  this  coloring 
shall  be  "dull  finish". 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


67 


A  striking  fact  is  to  be  noted  just  here.  The  blackboard,  the 
recipient  of  endless  obloquy  at  the  hands  of  the  aesthetic,  ceases 
to  offend  where  the  walls  are  rightly  tinted.  Indeed,  the  real  slate 
"blackboard"  is  never  black  at  all,  but  a  pleasing  quiet  gray  that 
has  no  quarrels.  It  is  only  a  glaring  white  wall  that  thrusts  the 
blackboard  into  undue  prominence,  and  thus  makes  it  a  scapegoat 
for  a  fault  not  its  own.  Speaking  of  blackboards,  the  various  ex- 
periments in  tinting  the  board  have  proved  anything  but  satisfac- 
tory. The  logical  and  satisfactory  combination  is  a  tinted  wall 
and  a  board  of  natural  slate-gray.  A  room  thus  finished  is  funda- 
mentally beautiful  and  is  not  in  urgent  need  of  any  further  deco- 


A    SCH3CL    ROOM    WITH    WELL -FINISHED    WELL-DECORATED    WALLS. 

ration.     Speaking  generally,  we  may  say  that  a  room  properly 
tinted  is  nine-tenths  decorated. 

I  remember  one  school  particularly,  in  Andover,  when  George  E. 
Johnson  was  in  charge.  It  had  not  exactly  the  "dim  religious 
light,"  but  a  quality  of  air  and  color  which  one's  home  has,  if  he 
has  a  home.  Its  rooms  were  as  cool  as  the  aisles  of  the  woods,  and 
as  mellow ;  rooms  that  seem  to  have,  in  themselves,  a  personality, 
and  to  be  sociable  when  empty.  I  used  to  think  that  not  even  a 
Jukes  would  play  truant  from  such  a  school  as  that;  and  that  no 
teacher,  be  she  ever  so  mediocre,  could  quite  annul  the  beneiicence 
to  the  pupil  of  such  a  surrounding. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


WHY  AYE  NEED  PURE  AIR. 

Did  you  ever  see  a  fish  out  of  water?  Did  you  ever  watch  one 
wriggle  and  struggle  and  gasp  as  his  life  slowly  slipped  away? 
It  is  distressing  to  watch  a  fine,  strong  specimen  which  a  few  min- 
utes ago  could  dart  hither  and  thither  through  the  water  with 
great  speed  and  force,  die  by  degrees  when  taken  from  his  native 
realm.  What  causes  the  fish's  death?  A  little  study  of  his  make- 
up will  show  you  that  his  gills  which  are  lungs  to  him  are  made  to 
get  oxygen  from  water,  hence  when  out  of  water  he  dies  for  air 
although  it  is  all  about  him  in  abundant  supply. 

Did  you  ever  step  from  outside  fresh  air  into  a  crowded,  stuffy, 
pcxorly  ventilated  school  room?  Did  you  see  the  children,  some 
wriggling,  some  gaping,  and  others  half  sleeping  because  they  could 
not  get  enough  air?  What  was  the  matter?  The  fish  had  air  all 
about  it,  but  it  did  not  have  proper  breathing  apparatus.  The  chil- 
dren in  the  school  room  had  proper  breathing  apparatus,  but  were 
slowly  dying  for  want  of  fresh  air  although  a  world  supply  was 
just  outside.  It  is  a  shame  to  catch  up  a  lot  of  lively  rosy-cheeked 
boys  and  girls  whose  lungs  were  made  for  out-door  fresh  air  and 
crowd  them  into  a  tight  box  and  compel  them  to  sit  still  for  hours 
and  breathe  impure,  poison  air. 

School  officers  and  teachers  should  remember  that  the  blood  de- 
pends upon  the  air  supply  for  much  of  its  food  and  that  the  body 
depends  upon  the  blood  as  its  great  safeguard  against  disease.  In 
spite  of  all  precautions,  school  children  are  subject  to  many  dan- 
gers from  disease  germs  and  it  is  a  grave  mistake  to  force  them 
into  the  midst  of  these  foes  with  no  means  of  ample  protection. 
"We  readily  recognize  the  effects  of  the  lack  of  ordinary  food  upon 
animals,  of  a  lack  of  water  upon  vegetation.  Most  of  us  have  no- 
ticed the  pale,  sickly  plant  that  grows  without  proper  sunlight, 
but  many  teachers  and  members  of  boards  of  education  fail  to 
recognize  the  starving  condition  of  children  who  are  robbed  of  the 
proper  amount  of  free,  fresh  air. 

It  is  hoped  that  those  concerned  will  read  the  following  pages 
carefully  and  seek  in  every  way  possible  to  know  how  to  provide 
proper  means  of  ventilation  and  heating.  The  cost  of  proper  heat- 
ing and  ventilating  systems  seems  high,  but  what  is  a  little  cost 
when  compared  to  human  life? 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE.  69 

VENTILATION  AND  SANITATION. 

JOSEPH   ROSIER,   Superintendent   Fairmont  Public   Schools. 

Boards  of  education,  school  superintendents  and  principals  in 
our  state  are  just  beginning  to  realize  their  duty  and  responsibil- 
ity in  relation  to  the  promotion  of  public  health.  It  was  formerly 
thought  that  provision  for  intellectual  training  was  sufficient,  and 
that  it  was  entirely  outside  the  sphere  of  the  educational  authori- 
ties to  give  any  attention  to  physical  development,  and  the  preser- 
vation of  health,  but  with  the  scientific  study  of  education,  we  have 
found  that  physical  conditions  very  materially  affect  the  mental 
growth  of  the  child.  It  is  now  recognized  as  the  imperative  duty 
of  school  authorities  in  providing  educational  equipment  to  give 
careful  attention  to  those  things  that  are  conducive  to  healthful 
physical  development,  and  that  will  prevent  the  spread  c«f  disease. 

In  olden  times  it  was  thought  that  epidemics  of  disease  that  re- 
sulted in  the  death  of  thousands  of  people  were  the  visitation  of  an 
avenging  providence,  and  that  the  sins  of  the  people  were  thus 
being  punished,  but  with  the  advance  of  medical  and  sanitary  sci- 
ence, we  know  that  most  of  the  diseases  that  destroy  mankind  are 
preventable.  The  great  Pasteur  has  said  that  it  is  within  the 
power  of  men  to  cause  all  parasitic  diseases  to  disappear  from  the 
world.  General  knowledge  must  be  the  basis  of  the  fight  against 
preventable  disease.  This  involves  first  of  all  a  widespread  ac- 
quaintance with  the  germ  theory  of  disease  which  is  a  clearly  dem- 
onstrated fact  of  modern  science.  In  the  air  we  breathe  and  in  the 
food  we  eat,  arid  in  the  water  we  drink,  are  the  germs  of  the  many 
diseases  that  afflict  and  destroy  mankind.  There  are  two  lines  of 
attack  in  the  warfare  against  disease  germs.  First  we  may  keep 
our  bodies  in  such  perfect  physical  condition  through  the  observ- 
ance of  the  laws  of  health  that  these  germ  enemies  cannot  find 
receptive  soil  within  our  bodies.  Second  we  may  so  purify  and 
cleanse  our  physical  surroundings  that  the  number  of  germs  in  air, 
food  and  water  will  be  reduced  to  the  minimum,  or  they  may  be 
completely  abolished.  A  recent  writer  on  this  subject  has  given 
a  very  vivid  picture  of  what  a  land  without  disease  germs  would  be 
like.  It  would  be  a  land  where  there  are  no  colds,  catarrh,  con- 
sumption, influenza,  diphtheria,  or  pneumonia;  a  land  where  boils, 
blood  poisoning,  and  lockjaw  are  unknown;  a  land  where  there  is 


70  SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 

no  smallpox,  measles,  scarlet  fever,  whooping  cough,  or  mumps;  a 
land  free  from  malaria,  cholera,  leprosy,  yellow  fever,  and  typhoid 
fever. 

Our  people  in  general  must  be  educated  through  the  schools  con- 
cerning the  ravages  of  the  germ  diseases,  and  the  importance  of  ex- 
ercising every  possible  precaution  in  checking  them.  In  the  United 
States  in  1907  there  was  for  each  100,000  population  a  death  rate 
of  .2  from  smallpox,  12.2  from  whooping  cough,  24.3  from  diph- 
theria, and  croup,  26.6  from  meningitis,  161.2  from  pneumonia, 
and  183.6  from  tuberculosis,  and  30.3  from  typhoid  fever.  It  is  a 
curious  fact  that  in  most  communities  a  case  of  smallpox  will  cause 
more  concern  than  a  case  of  any  of  the  other  diseases  mentioned, 
and  3^et  the  other  diseases  are  far  more  widespread  and  disastrous 
in  their  results.  The  leading  scourges  of  the  people  according  to 
the  above  figures  are  typhoid  fever,  pneumonia,  and  tuberculosis. 
These  diseases  must  be  conquered  largely  by  proper  means  of  sani- 
tation and  ventilation  in  the  home,  in  the  school  and  in  the  commu- 
nity. In  1907  the  death  rate  from  typhoid  fever  in  England  and 
Wales  for  each  100,000  population  was  6.7.  That  is  in  that  year 
there  were  nearly  five  times  as  many  deaths  for  each  100,000  in- 
habitants in  this  country  as  in  those  countries  from  this  purely  germ 
disease.  Typhoid  fever  is  a  much  dreaded  disease  in  this  country, 
but  more  than  six  times  as  many  people  die  from  tuberculosis.  In 
its  relation  to  the  health  problem  the  school  must  do  two  things. 
It  must  provide  ample  opportunities  for  the  best  possible  physical 
development  in  playgrounds  and  in  physical  exercise,  and  sensible 
and  practical  instruction  in  physiology  and  hygiene.  It  must  make 
its  physical  environment  of  such  a  character  that  it  will  be  free 
from  disease  germs,  and  from  those  conditions  that  breed  or  scatter 
disease  germs. 

The  first  problem  to  be  considered  in  the  light  c«f  the  foregoing 
facts  in  the  erection  of  a  school  house  is  the  matter  of  ventilation. 
That  is  the  furnishing  of  an  abundance  of  fresh  pure  air  to  the  chil- 
dren in  the  school  room  for  breathing.  Let  it  be  understood  by 
every  one  having  the  responsibility  of  erecting  a  school  house  that 
this  matter  is  imperative.  In  the  light  of  the  above  knowledge  of 
disease  germs  it  is  a  crime  to  house  children  in  a  school  room  that 
through  lack  of  proper  ventilation  is  a  hotbed  for  the  breeding 
and  scattering  of  deadly  germs  that  may  cut  short  their  lives.  In 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE.  71 

the  towns  and  cities  this  of  course  calls  for  gravity  systems  in 
smaller  buildings,  and  single  and  double  fan  systems  in  larger 
buildings.  The  problem  must  also  be  met  in  the  villages  and  rural 
districts.  There  are  a  number  of  plans  that  may  be  adopted  for 
the  rural  school  building. 


A    MODERN    HEATING    SYSTEM. 

i 

Jacketing  Stoves.  Even  the  old-fashioned  stove  may  be  put  in 
the  corner  of  the  room,  and  be  surrounded  with  a  hoed  of  sheeting 
a  few  inches  from  the  stove,  and  extending  to  the  top  with  a  duct 
to  bring  fresh  air  into  the  space  between  the  stove  and  the  sheeting. 
The  foul  air  may  be  carried  out  by  means  of  a  duct  passing  from 
the  lower  part  of  the  floor,  and  connecting  with  thfk  chimney  above. 
Any  intelligent  carpenter  who  has  been  given  a  few  minutes  expla- 
nation of  the  laws  of  room  ventilation,  can  with  a  few  dollars  extra 
expense  work  out  a  plan  that  will  be  a  great  improvement  over  the 
present  lack  of  ventilation  in  the  one  room  school  house. 


72  SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 

New  Systems  of  Heating.  But  no  new  school  house  ought  to  be 
erected  without  being  equipped  with  one  of  the  new  room  furnaces 
that  are  now  on  the  market.  A  stove  or  furnace  of  this  character 
will  cost  two  or  throe  times  as  much  as  the  old-fashioned  kind,  but 
it  will  provide  excellent  and  sanitary  means  of  heating  and  venti- 
lating the  room.  As  I  write  I  quote  from  the  circular  describing 
one  of  these  modern  heaters.  It  consists  of  a  sanitary  room  furnace 
or  convection  heater,  a  patent  fresh  air  intake,  patent  siphon  foul 
air  extractor,  and  an  air  humidifier.  We  are  told  that  the  fresh 
air  pours  into  the  convection  shield  through  the  fresh  air  intake. 
"Within  the  shield,  the  air  is  then  warmed  quickly  to  the  proper 
temperature,  rises  to  the  ceiling  and  spreads  out  over  the  entire 
room.  In  the  meantime  the  pull  of  the  foul  air  extractor  supple- 
mented by  the  upward  current  through  the  shield,  draws  the  colder 
heavier  air  off  the  floor.  The  lighter,  warmer  layers  from  above 
gradually  settle  toward  the  floor  to  take  the  place  of  the  air  remov- 
ed, and  are  themselves  replaced  in  turn  by  warm,  fresh  air.  This 
goes  on  continuously. 

As  will  be  seen  this  is  merely  the  application  of  the  principle  of 
heating  and  ventilating  used  in  larger  buildings  to  a  single  room, 
except  that  the  stove  or  furnace  is  placed  in  the  room.  No  board  of 
education  has  done  its  duty  to  the  children  and  the  community 
that  does  not  make  an  honest  effort  to  provide  some  mechanical 
means  of  ventilation  in  every  new  school  house  erected,  whatever 
may  be  the  number  of  rooms,  and  the  county  superintendent  is  not 
doing  his  full  duty  if  he  approves  of  a  building  that  has  no  pro- 
vision for  ventilation  excepting  the  windows. 

Effects  of  Bad  Air.  Modern  sanitary  science  has  developed  the 
fact  that  the  enervating,  depressing  effect  of  school  room  air,  is  not 
so  much  due  to  the  excess  of  carbon  dioxide  as  it  is  to  the  low  hu- 
midity, and  excessive  heat.  Some  years  ago  Dr.  E.  R.  Shaw,  an 
authority  on  this  subject,  examined  a  building  in  which  there  was  a 
complete  heating  and  ventilating  system,  as  to  the  condition  of  the 
air.  At  ten  o'clock  in  the  morning  the  temperature  was  70  degrees, 
and  the  relative  humidity  25  per  cent.  The  700  children  in  the 
building  breathed  this  air  for  three  hours,  and  then  passed  out 
into  an  atmosphere  having  80  per  cent,  of  moisture,  and  they  re- 
turned to  go  through  the  same  process  in  the  afternoon.  Such 
changes  as  these  pupils  underwent  must  unquestionably  result  in 
colds  and  inflammation  of  the  throat  and  bronchial  passages.  On 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE.  73 

the  other  hand  an  excess  of  humidity  together  with  heat  causes  a 
fueling  of  depression.  Dr.  Luther  Gulick  in  a  recent  address  says 
in  speaking  on  the  health  of  the  teacher  that  it  is  really  true  that 
the  men  and  women  who  stay  in  our  overheated  school  rooms  for 
many  years  literally  dry  up.  Some  teachers  keep  a  kettle  or  pot 
on  the  stove.  This  is  good  as  far  as  it  goes,  but  the  ordinary  ves- 
sel used  will  not  begin  to  supply  the  humidity  lost  in  heating  the 
air  of  the  room,  even  though  it  be  frequently  filled.  Sanitary  ex- 
perts are  of  the  opinion  that  a  mean  relative  humidity  of  not  less 
than  50  per  cent  is  necessary  to  health.  Therefore  in  dealing  with 
the  problem  of  ventilation  provisions  must  be  made  to  preserve  a 
proper  amount  of  moisture  in  the  air,  or  to  replace  that  lost  by 
heating. 

Location  of  School  Buildings.  The  location  of  the  school  build- 
ing will  have  much  to  do  with  the  health  of  the  children.  It  should 
be  central  so  that  the  children  in  reaching  the  building  will  not  be 
unduly  exposed.  The  site  should  be  on  a  gentle  slope,  and  if  it 
does  not  naturally  drain  away  from  the  building  on  all  sides,  it 
should  be  graded  so  that  it  will.  All  authorities  agree  that  the 
soil  is  an  important  matter  in  the  site.  A  rich  loamy  soil  should 
bo  avoided,  as  should  also  a  soil  of  clay.  They  retain  moisture  in 
excess.  The  site  should  not  be  near  a  swamp,  or  places  where  pools 
of  water  stand  part  of  the  year,  and  it  should  have  an  eastern  ex- 
posure. Soil  formed  from  decayed  vegetation,  swamps,  and  stag- 
nant pools  are  favorable  breeding  places  for  disease  germs.  Dry 
soil  with  perfect  drainage,  air  uncontaminated  by  filthy  surround- 
ings, and  all  the  sunshine  that  can  be  secured,  are  deadly  foes  of 
our  germ  enemies.  In  the  erection  of  new  buildings  whether  in 
town  or  country  no  pains  should  be  spared  to  meet  the  above  re- 
quirements in  a  site.  In  case  a  dry  soil  with  good  drainage  cannot 
be  secured  in  a  central  location,  the  site  selected  should  be  graded 
and  drained  before  the  building  is  erected.  Too  much  emphasis 
cannot  be  placed  upon  selecting  a  site  with  a  view  to  the  health- 
fulness  and  the  wholesomeness  of  its  surroundings. 

Outhouses.  From  the  sanitary  standpoint  the  most  urgent  mat- 
ter is  the  construction  and  the  care  of  the  school  outhouses.  In  the 
cities  and  towns  where  there  are  water  and  sewer  systems  this 
problem  must  be  met  by  the  installation  of  sanitary  closets  with  first 
class  plumbing.  In  the  villages  and  country  districts  where  there 
are  no  sewer  and  water  connections  other  means  must  be  adopted. 


74  SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 

The  most  unsanitary  thing  imaginable  is  the  water  closet  connected 
with  the  average  village  and  country  school.  In  too  many  places 
it  is  a  filthy  stench.  Bacteriologists  agree  that  disease  germs  are 
scattered  only  through  the  discharges  from  the  bodies  of  those  who 
have  disease.  Therefore  proper  health  conditions  require  the  ut- 
most precautions  in  destroying  all  bodily  excreta.  The  closet  should 
not  be  located  so  that  water  in  rainy  seasons  will  drain  from  it  on  to 
the  grounds  and  pollute  the  soil.  It  should  be  constructed  with  the 
idea  constantly  in  mind  that  it  may  be  the  abiding  place  of  the 
most  deadly  enemies  of  the  community.  This  means  that  it  should 
be  securely  closed  in  every  way.  There  should  be  a  vault  built  of 
stone  and  cement  so  that  the  surrounding  soil  cannot  be  contami- 
nated. This  vault  should  be  cleaned  three  or  four  times  a  year. 
The  contents  should  be  taken  far  from  the  building  and  scattered 
on  ground  where  they  will  be  exposed  to  the  sun  which  is  the  best 
destroyer  of  disease  germs.  There  is  also  what  is  called  the  "pail 
system".  By  this  plan  galvanized  iron  pails  are  placed  in  the 
vault,  and  removed  at  regular  intervals,  and  replaced  by  others. 
The  openings  in  the  closets  should  be  covered,  and  the  entire  space 
around  the  vault  made  so  tight  that  flies  cannot  enter.  For  it  is 
recognized  now  that  the  fly  is  the  most  common  carrier  of  disease 
germs.  School  boards  should  furnish  as  a  part  of  their  regular 
supplies  an  abundant  quantity  of  lime  and  fine  dry  earth  which 
should  be  used  freely  each  day  in  the  closet.  In  many  sections  wood 
ashes  can  be  more  easily  secured,  and  they  are  better  than  lime. 
For  the  preservation  of  health  among  school  children,  the  school 
closet  should  receive  first  consideration.  School  authorities  in 
many  localities  are  criminally  negligent  in  this  matter.  For  the- 
sake  of  moral  decency,  the  approach  and  entrance  to  the  closet 
should  be  shielded  from  public  view  by  screens. 

Water  Supphf.  Another  matter  of  serious  importance  to  the 
health  of  the  children  is  that  of  the  supply  of  drinking  water.  In 
the  cities  where  there  is  a  water  system,  the  buildings  should  be 
supplied  with  sanitary  drinking  fountains,  thus  doing  away  with 
the  drinking  cup.  In  village  and  country  neighborhoods  there  is 
usually  a  well  on  the  school  grounds.  To  be  safe  this  should  be 
drilled  deep  and  cased  with  the  best  quality  of  galvanized  iron  pipe 
so  that  there  is  no  possibility  of  surface  drainage  getting  into  it. 
There  should  be  a  cement  basin  and  curbing  about  the  top  of  the< 
well  with  a  drainage  pipe  so  that  all  waste  water  may  be  carried 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


75 


off  quickly.  The  well  should  be  thoroughly  cleaned  out  at  the 
opening  of  each  term,  and  the  pumping  or  bailing  apparatus 
should  be  kept  in  perfect  sanitary  condition.  Children  need  to 
drink  an  abundance  of  water  and  their  health  demands  that  it 
should  be  pure  and  free  from  injurious  germs.  As  soon  as  possible 
the  common  drinking  cup  should  be  banished  from  all  our  schools. 
It  is  believed  to  be  the  most  fruitful  means  of  communicating  dis- 
ease. The  drinking  fountain  in  the  city  meets  the  difficulty,  and 
in  the  village  and  the  country  it  must  be  met  for  the  present  by 
the  individual  drinking  cups.  These  may  be  furnished  by  the 
school  board  or  by  the  parents  of  the  children. 

If  we  are  to  win  in 
this  warfare  against 
disease,  the  people 
of  every  community 
must  awaken  to  the 
value  and  the  necessi- 
ty of  sanitation  in  the 
school  and  in  the 
home.  Those  en- 
gaged in  the  cam- 
paign for  better  health  conditions  have  declared  implacable 
war  against  the  five  D's — dirt,  darkness,  dampness,  dust,  and 
drink.  All  the  dirty,  dark  and  damp  places  about  the  school 
building  and  grounds  should  be  banished.  The  outside  of  the 
building  should  be  painted  regularly,  and  the  inside  floors  and 
woodwork  should  be  scrubbed  and  washed  with  strong  soap  and 
water  two  or  three  times  a  year.  School  authorities  should  see  to 
it  that  no  one  can  justly  charge  or  claim  that  the  school  either  in 
town  or  country  is  a.  breeding  place  of  disease  and  death.  Our 
schools  both  in  precept  and  in  practice 
should  lead  in  the  movement  for  civi< 
health  and  cleanliness.  Fresh  and  uncontami 
nated  air  to  breath  day  and  night,  wholescoir 
and  unadulterated  food  to  eat,  and  pure  water 
free  from  all  disease  germs  to  drink,  will  greatb 
lessen  sickness  and  doctor  bills  in  every  commun 
ity  and  every  home.  I  sincerely  hope  that  edu 
cational  authorities  everywhere  will  see  to  it,  tha; 
the  school  and  its  environment  present  to  the  WINDOW  SHADE 
community  the  best  possible  example  of  right 

.  Courtesy    Montgomery, 

sanitary  conditions.  ward  &  Co. 


A  NEW  SYSTEM  OF  HEATING. 

This   is  one  of  the   enemies  of  disease  referred   to   in 
this  article. 


\ 

76  SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 

WATER  SUPPLY  AND  DRINKING  CUPS. 

(Note — See  the  following  article  on  "Drinking  Fountains"  for  a 
more  complete  discussion  of  this  question.) 

Too  often  school  houses  are  built  with  no  thought  of  an  abundant 
supply  of  water.  Usually  the  school  children  should  not  be  put  at 
the  mercy  of  nearby  neighbors  for  drinking  water,  although  many 
of  our  schools  are  well  supplied  from  springs  or  wells  kept  up  by 
neighboring  citizens.  If  spring  water  is  used  care  should  be  taken 
to  keep  the  spring  free  from  incoming  or  decaying  filth. 

Some  schools  within  the  -knowledge  of  the  writer  get  their  drink- 
ing water  from  streams  that  receive  the  drainage  of  many  stables 
and  closets.  Such  carelessness  indicates  a  very  low  estimate  of  life 
and  right  habits. 

Where  funds  are  available,  the  school  should  be  furnished  with  a 
well,  properly  legated  and  so  cemented  as  to  prevent  surface  water) 
and  filth  from  entering.  If  a  well  is  used,  it  should  be  "pumped 
out"  and  cleaned  before  the  opening  of  school  each  year. 

These  matters  should  be  attended  to  by  official  act  and  not  left 
to  good-natured  neighobrs,  careless  boys,  or  indifferent  teachers. 

Drinking  Vessel? — I  see  it  now- — that  old,  rusty,  dirty  water  buck- 
et sitting  in  the  corner  of  the  room  catching  great  quantities  of  the 
dust  which  floats  in  clouds  from  a  poorly  kept  floor,  or  perhaps 
sitting  beneath  a  shelf  covered  with  hats,  clothing,  brooms,  dust  rags 
and  promiscuous  dirt,  all  of  which  add  their  quota  to  the  mass  of 
germs  found  in  the  water.  I  see  the  common  dipper  also — used  day 
after  day  and  week  after  week  by  twenty-five  or  thirty  pupils — 
some  with  diseased  hands,  some  with  sore  lips,  others  healthy  and 
clean.  Many  of  these  children  practice  economy  by  pouring  what 
is  left  of  a  dipper-full  back  into  the  common  bucket  and  thus  swell 
the  company  of  germs.  I  know  some  will  sneer  at  so  much  "fuss 
about  germs,"  but  "hardheaded"  medical  science  says  they  are 
there  and  dangerous  too,  and  good  manners  protests  against  such 
habits  on  the  grounds  of  personal  rights  and  decency. 

If  one  bucket  and  dipper  must  be  used  they  should  be  cleaned 
daily,  scalded  often  end  kept  in  as  clean  place  as  possible. 

At  very  small  cost,  boards  of  education  in  rural  districts  can  se- 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


77 


cure  a  closed  earthen  tank  with  a  faucet  for  drawing  the  water 
when  needed.  This  shuts  out  dust  and  prevents  the  cup  or  surplus 
water  from  being  thrown  into  the  water  to  be  used. 

Individual  Drinking  Cups. — A  great  many  schools  in  West  Vir- 
ginia where  water  systems  and  drinking  fountains  are  not  available 
are  using  individual  drinking  cups.  In  some  schools  each  child 


Courtesy  O.  J.  Kern,  author  of  "Among  Country  Schools." 
A  PLAN  WHICH  CAN  BE  USED  BY  ANY  TEACHER. 

keeps  a  glass  or  folded  cup  in  the  desk  and  uses  same  for  drinking 
purposes.  What  is  probably  a  better  plan  is  indicated  by  the  pic- 
ture above,  which  shows  how  individual  cups  may  be  kept  ready 
for  use  by  the  pupils.  W^hen  such  cups  are  used  they  should  not 
be  dipped  into  the  water  bucket,  but  should  be  filled  with  a  dipper 
or  still  better  from  the  faucet  of  the  water  tank  described  above. 

DRINKING  FOUNTAINS. 

T.  J.  Humphrey,  Supt.  Graf  ton  Public  Schools. 

We  are  no  longer  at  the  threshold  of  the  twentieth  century,  but 
well  within  its  gates,  and  whether  we  want  it  or  not,  our  shoulders 
are  resting  squarely  under  the  burden  it  places  upon  us  with  no  pos- 
sible way  of  escape  save  through  the  effort  to  bring  twentieth  century 
conditions  into  harmony  with  twentieth  century  demands,  which 


78  SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 

demands  are  based  upon  scientific  investigations  which  reveal  to  an 
appalling  degree,  a  lack  of  santitary  conditions  in  our  public  schools. 
Since  it  is  my  privilege  to  say  a  few  words  concerning  one  of  these 


Courtesy  of  The  Anti-Germ  Drinking  Fountain  Co.,  Boston. 
THE  ANTI-GERM   DRINKING  FOUNTAIN. 

burdens,  I  shall  be  glad  to  let  them  be  against  the  "GXUP  THAT 
KILLS"  and  in  favor  of  its  successor,  the  "MODERN  DRINKING 
FOUNTAIN. "  Indeed  I  think  it  almost  superfluous  to  say  anything 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


79 


against  the  common  drinking  cup  in  the  school  house,  for  surely 
there  are  very  few  who  have  been  elected  to  manage  our  public 
schools  who  have  not  been  made  aware  by  the  newspapers,  maga 
zines,  journals,  and  doctors  of  the  dangers  that  must  attend  this 
method  of  supplying  drinking  water  to  the  children  in  these  schools, 
even  though  they  have  gone  so  far  as  to  supply  the  individual  drink- 
ing cup. 

Bacteriologists  have  shown  us  too  conclusively  how  the  germ  of 
diphtheria,  scarlet  fever,  tonsiiitis,  tuberculosis,  yes  and  those 
more  loathsome  diseases,  gonorrhea  and  syphilis  have  been  spread 
through  the  drinking  cup.  We  are  assured  that  though  a  person  is 
perfectly  healthy,  the  mouth  is  a  natural  lurking  place  of  a1!  kinds 
of  germs,  both  dangerous  and  harmless.  We  sometimes  wonder  how 
certain  epidemics  get  started  in  our  schools  when  a  little  investiga- 
tion shows  that  it  is  due  to  our  eternal  carelessness  and  negligence  in 
heeding  the  demands  or  observing  the  sanitary  laws  which  are  the 
common  knowledge  of  almost  all.  It  's  too  late  to  plead  ignorance  ; 
the  drinking  cup  must  go,  and  in  its  stead  where  possible,  must 
come  the  fountain  which  is  absolutely  sanitary,  easy  to  keep  clean 
and  which  will  be  able  to  control  water  pressure.  Great  care 
should  be  exercised  in  the  selection  of  this  fixture,  lest  you  get  some- 
thing that  will  not  prove  satisfactory.  If  this  is  to  be  installed  in 

the  building  where  provisions  have 
not  already  been  made  for  it, 
you  will  probably  have  to  use  the 
type  with  a  pedestal  base,  resting 
coi  the  floor  in  the  corridor,  which 
is  always  objectionable  in  so  far 
that  it  is  in  the  way  and  more  or 
less  dirt  will  be  let  accumulate  at 
the  floor.  If  installed  with  the 
building,  it  is  better  to  have  it 
placed  in  an  arch  way  recess  pre- 
pared in  the  wall  as  this  not  only 
takes  it  out  of  the  way,  but  the 
overflow  pipes  are  always  hidden, 
A  SANITARY  DRINKING  FOUN-  which  is  more  sanitary  as  will  be 

readily  seen. 

Which  ever  type  is  used,  however,  it  should  be  provided  with 
the  recent  improvement  of  regulating  the  flow  of  water  which  will 
not  only  save  water  but  prevent  it  spurting  to  the  ceiling  and  flood- 


80 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


ing  the  floor.  It  will  likewise  insure  the  one  who  is  drinking  from 
an  embarassing  situation  which  may  result  from  a  sudden  change 
of  pressure. 

Another  recent  improvement  which  should  be  carefully  consider- 
ed is  the  displacement  of  the  metal  bubbling  cup  Avith  the  vitroub 
china,  thus  preventing  corrosion,  discoloration  and  other  objection- 
able features.  It  also  offers  good  protection  to  the  lips  and  teeth 
from  serious  injury  which  is  sometimes  caused  by  children  who  are 
over  anxious  to  have  a  little  fun  at  the  expense  of  some  one  who  is 
drinking — not  infrequently  a  tooth  or  two  is  shattered.  We  are 
not  talking  theory,  but  from  experience,  as  our  board  of  educa- 
tion last  year  placed  fountains  in  all  of  our  schools,  and  so  far  as 
we  are  concerned,  we  have  seen  the  passing  of  the  drinking  cup, 
with  all  its  germs,  dirt  and  filth,  and  are  now  watching  our  boys 
and  girls  drink  from  a  bubbling  fountain  with  the  consciousness 
that  not  only  doctor  bills  are  being  saved,  but  misery  and  suffering. 

JACKETED  STOVES. 

Experience  and  experiments  show  that  an  ordinary  stove  with- 
out a  jacket  gives  very  unequal  distribution  of  warm  and  cold  air. 
The  picture  given  herewith  shows  how  pupils  who  sit  near  an  or- 


Fro,, i,  "School,  Sanitation  and  Decoration,"  D.  C.  Heath  &  Co.,  Publishers. 
The    ordinary    unjacketed    stove,    showing    the    unequal    distribution    of 
warm  and  cold  air.     Think  of  the  number  of  little  children  who  sit 
day  after  day  in  the  region  of  "cold  and  foul  air." 

dinary  stove  suffer  with  too  much  heat,  while  those  farther  away 
are  too  cold.  Such  diagrams  as  the  one  given  here  are  not  mere 
guesswork,  but  are  made  from  thermometer  readings  and  other 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


81 


accurate  observations.  Some  such  system  as  the  Smith  or  "Water- 
man-Waterbury.  which  are  explained  on  the  following  pages, 
should  be  used  where  possible.  For  the  benefit  of  boards  of  edu- 
cation without  sufficient  funds  for  purchasing  such  elaborate  sys- 
tems the  following  directions  are  given : 

In  some  states  heating  systems  have  been  installed  in  the  base- 
ment of  rural  school  buildings.  This  method  has  been  found  un- 
satisfactory in  most  cases  because  proper  plumbing  and  janitor 
service  can  not  be  secured  or  afforded  in  such  places.  Therefore 
some  system  of  jacketing  the  stoves  must  be  adopted.  I  quote 
from  an  article  which  says,  ' '  The  stove  should  be  surrounded  by  a 


Frcm  ''School  Sanitation  and  Decoration,"  D.  C.  Heath  &  Co.,  Publishers. 

Gravity  system,  with  inlet  near  the  floor  and  outlet  near  the  ceiling  on  the 
opposite  side,  indicating-  a  very  poor  distribution  of  warm  air. 

sheet  or  plate  of  some  kind,  set  a  few  inches  from  the  stove;  so  that 
the  air  between  the  stove  and  jacket  may  be  heated  to  make  it  rise 
and  circulate  through  the  rooms  instead  of  scorching  the  faces  of 
the  youngsters  who  sit  nearest. 

This  jacket  may  be  a  wooden  frame  covered  with  sheets  of  as- 
bestos ;  it  may  be  of  tin  or  galvanized  iron.  It  may  be  put  around 
any  stove  no  matter  what  its  size  and  shape,  and  may  be  done  by  a 
tinner,  a  carpenter,  a  blacksmith  or  any  ordinary  handy  man.  It 
is  very  greatly  improved  when  a  hole  is  cut  through  the  floor  under 
the  stove,  so  as  to  draw  in  fresh  air  from  out  of  doors  to  pass  up 
between  the  stove  and  the  jacket.  This  hole  should  be  large,  and 
should  be  controlled  by  a  slide  or  register  of  some  kind. 

When  connected  with  the  outdoor  air  in  this  way,  the  jacketed 
stove  is  a  ventilating  as  well  as  a  heating  device,  bringing  in  fresh 


82 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


air,  warming  it  and  distributing  it  through  the  room.  It  should  be 
balanced  by  providing  a  large  outlet  for  foul  air,  at  the  floor  level 
and  near  the  stove.  This  foul  air  outlet  may  be  a  small  fireplace; 
or  a  large  pipe  going  into  the  chimney  and  up  the  chimney.  Thus 
it  is  surrounded  and  heated  by  the  smoke  from  the  stove,  which 
produces  an  upward  suction  in  the  pipe,  drawing  off  bad  air  from 
the  room  below.'1 


'From  "School  Sanitation  and  Decoration,"  D.  C.  Heath  &  Co.,  Publishers. 
Gravity   system,   with   inlet   and   outlet   on   opposite   sides   and   near  the 
floor.     The   current  of  warm   air   indicated  by  the  arrows   goes  too 
near  the  ceiling  and  thus  fails  to  reach  the  pupils. 


From  '-'School  Sanitation  and  Decoration,"  D.  C.  Heath  &  Co.,  Publishers. 
Gravity  system,  with  inlet  and  outlet  on  the  same  side  of  the  room.    This 
shows  the  best  method  of  gravity  distribution. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


83 


THE  SMITH  SYSTEM  FOR  HEATING  AND  VENTILATING  SCHOOLS. 


Courtesy   of   the    Manuel-Smith    Co.,    Manufacturers,    Minneapolis. 

The   above   cut   shows    the   distribution   of   warm   air    in   a   school   room 
equipped  with  the  Smith  System. 


Cor.rtcsv   of   flic   Manucl-8;nilh    Co..    Manufacturers,    Minneapolis. 
THE  SMITH  SYSTEM  C:M~LETE. 


84 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE.  85 

WHAT    THE    AVATERBURY   SYSTEM    OF   HEATING   AND 

VENTILATION  DOES  WHEN  INSTALLED 

IN  A  SCHOOL  ROOM. 

First — Supplies  large  volumes  of  fresh  air  rich  in  oxygen,  and 
thoroughly  warms  and  distributes  this  air  over  the  entire  room. 

Second — Removes  from  the  room  an  equal  volume  of  air  which 
has  been  depleted  of  its  life-sustaining  element  and  has  become 
poisoned  by  large  quantities  of  carbonic  acid  gas  and  organic  im- 
purities. In  short,  completely  renews  the  air  of  the  room  from 
five  to  eight  times  per  hour. 

Third — Does  away  with  window  ventilation,  which  is  almost  as 
great  an  evil  as  impure  air,  admitting  as  it  does,  cold  draughts  to 
the  school  room,  causing  colds,  coughs,  and  kindred  ailments. 

Fourth — Maintains  a  uniform  temperature  all  over  the  room. 

Fifth — Absolutely  eliminates  the  cold  floor  problem  and 
"dreaded  hot  stove." 

Sixth — Adds  25  per  cent  to  the  seating  capacity  by  removing  the 
plant  to  the  nnmer  of  the  room;  changes  unsightly  heater  to  a 
heating  plant  of  pleasing  design. 

Seventh — Reduces  amount  of  district's  fuel  bill  by  utilizing  the 
heat  that  is  usually  wasted  in  overheating  the  upper  portion  of  the 
room  and  that  part  immediately  surrounding  the  stove. 

Eighth — Saves  the  people  of  the  district  many  times  the  cost  of 
the  plant  in  doctor  bills,  to  say  nothing  of  the  many  days'  absence 
on  account  of  illness. 

Ninth — Adds  25  per  cent  to  the  efficiency  of  the  school  because 
of  the  better  work  accomplished  under  improved  conditions. 

Tenth — The  whole  apparatus  is  under  the  direct  supervision  of 
the  teachers,  who  can  attend  to  it  without  leaving  the  room. 

Eleventh — Its  operation  is  so  simple  that  any  person  with  ordi- 
nary intelligence  can  secure  perfect  results. 

Twelfth — It  can  be  installed  in  old  schools  as  well  as  new  and  at 
any  time  of  the  year.  It  costs  only  one-fourth  (i/4)  as  much  as  a 
basement  furnace  and  will  give  decidedly  better  results.  Does  not 
require  a  basement. 


86 


SCHOOL 


THE  WATERBURY  HEATER  AND  ITS  APPLIANCES. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE.  87 


Raleigh,  N.  C., 

Feb.  21-1910. 


Hon  J  Y  Joyner, 

State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction, 
Raleigh.  N.  C. 

Dear  Sir:- 

At  your  request,  we  have  carefully  examined  several 
systems  of  heating  and  ventilation  for  the  purpose  of  ascertain- 
ing, as  best  we  could,  the  system  that  in- our  opinion  would  be 
most  satisfactory  and  best  adapted  in  all  respects  for  the  public 
Schools  of  this  State,  and  especially  for  use  in  the  school  houses 
built  in  accordance  with  the  State  plans. 

We  have  examined  and  applied  the  scientific  tests  to 
plants  installed  in  school  rooms  by  the  two  systems  that  we  con- 
sidered, after  investigation,  the  best,  one  of  which  was  the 
Waterbury  System,  manufactured  by  the  Waterman-Waterbury  Company 
We  recommend  this  system  as  the  best  that  we  ave  been  able  to 
find  for  the  public  schools  of  this  State,  after  careful. examina- 
tion into  the  merits  o<r  various  systems,  and  after  these  personal 
examinations  and  tests  of  the  best  systems  in  the  country. 

We  are  satisfied  that  the  adoption  and  installation  of 
this  system  of  heating  and  ventilation  in  the  schools^,  of  the  State. 
will  greatly  contribute  to  the  comfort,  the  health,  the  discipline 
and  the  intellectual  aotivlty  of  the  children 

Very  truly  yours, 


88 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


SEATS  AND  SEATING. 

This  subject  is  one  of  very  great  importance  as  it  has  to  do  with 
a  part  of  the  school  equipment  with  which  the  pupils  literally  come 
in  daily  contact.  The  slope  of  the  roof  may  have  some  effect  upon 
the  wear  of  the  roofing,  the  outside  color  of  the  house  may  add  to  or 
detract  from  the  attractiveness  of  the  general  appearance,  but  these 
considerations  are  small  when  compared  to  over  strained  nerves, 
mis-shapen  bones  and  permanent  deformities  caused  by  improper 
seats. 


From  "School  Hygiene,"  Courtesy  The  Macmillan  Company.,  Publishers. 
The  above  picture  shows  an  adjustable  desk  improperly  adjusted.     The 
chair  is  too  high,  lifting  thet  boy's  heels  from  the  floor;   the  height 
of  the  desk  throws  his  arms  uncomfortably  high  and  makes  an  im- 
proper angle  for  the  eyes. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE.  89 

Some  Bad  Conditions. — Although  most  of  the 
schools  in  West  Virginia  are  supplied  with  pat- 
ent seats,  there  are  yet  some  that  have  the  old, 
clumsy,  home-made  seats  and  desks.  The  writer 
has  seen  within  the  last  year,  rural  school  houses 
furnished  with  ncithing  but  long,  plain,  home- 
made benches  with  no  backs.  On  each  of  these 
seats  were  about  half  a  dozen  pupils,  some  large 
ones  with  no  room  for  their  long  legs,  and  some 
small  ones,  whose  feet  were  dangling  in  the  air. 
A  glance  at  a  row  of  such  pupils  bent  over  in 
rainbow-fashion  with  baoks  in  their  laps  excites 
a  visitor's  pity  for  the  children  and  wonder  that 

From       "School      Hy- 

the  community  would  be  content  with  such  con-     dene"  courtesy  The 

Macmillan       Cowpa- 
rJitirvn<i  ny>   Publishers. 

A  picture  showing 
the  effect  of  impro- 
per posture. 

Where  such  conditions  exist  and  lack  of  funds  will  not  permit 
the  board  of  education  to  buy  new  seats,  the  teacher  should  rise 
to  the  occasion.  If  he  or  she  is  enthusiastic  the  large  boys  and 
probably  some  patrons  can  be  induced  to  help  put  on  back  rests, 
saw  off  seats  that  are  too  high  and  put  blocks  under  ones  too  low. 
Many  teachers  read  books  and  inquire  at  institutes  to  find  out  how 
to  secure  order  and  cooperation,  when  sensible,  vigorous  dealing 
with  such  situations  as  described  above  will  win  the  love  of  the 
pupils  and  the  confidence  of  the  patrons. 

Qualities  to  Consider  When  Buying  Desks. 

The  Pupils. — Boards  of  education  and  teachers  should  ever  re- 
member that  the  child  is  the  first  and  final  consideration  in  all 
school  matters.  Before  placing  an  order  for  desks  a  careful  study 
of  the  size  of  the  children  for  whom  the  desks  are  intended  should 
be  made.  Of  course  pupils  shift  from  year  to  year  but  an  order 
for  a  third  grade  room,  based  upon  actual  measurements  of  the 
children  found  in  that  room  now,  will  likely  fit  the  needs  of  the 
children  promoted  to  such  room.  The  mistake  of  supposing  that 
children  of  the  same  grade  are  the  same  size  is  often  made.  School 
statistics  show  that  children  of  the  same  school  grade  vary  several 


90 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


years  in  age  and  that  children  of  the  same  age  vary  as  much  as 
eight  inches  in  height.  Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  the  seats  for  any 
grade  must  represent  great  variety  of  sizes. 

Height  of  Seats, — This  should  be  determined  by  the  distance  from 
the  heel  to  the  underside  of  the  angle  at  the  knee.  When  the  pupil 
sits  on  the  seat  with  his  feet  squarely  on  the  floor  the  angle  at  the 
knee  should  be  a  right  angle,  in  other  words,  the  upper  part  of 
the  leg  should  be  about  parallel  with  the  floor.  A  seat  that  is  too 
high  may  injure  the  soft  thigh  bones  in  little  children  or  cause 


THE   Leo  AX   ADJUSTABLE    SCHOOL   DESK. 

Manufactured    in/   the    W.    Va.    School   Fvrniture    Co.,   Logan,    W.    Va. 

These  desks  and  chairs  can  be  easily  adjusted  to  any  height  to  suit  the 
pupil,  therefore  giving  the  pupil  an  upright  and  healthful  position 
at  all  times. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


91 


weariness  and  nervousness  by  pressing  too  hard  on  the  underside 
of  the  leg.  A  seat  that  is  too  low  throws  the  body  in  an  uncom- 
fortable, awkward  position,  especially  when  the  pupil  leans  for- 
ward to  write  or  do  other  work.  Adjustable  chairs  are  very  desir- 
able if  funds  and  space  make  possible  their  use.  As  stated  above, 
boxes  and  foot  rests  should  be  used  if  seats  are  too  high  and  blocks 
should  be  placed  under  those  too  low. 

Other  Qualities  of  Seats. — The  seat  should  be  fastened  with  very 
strong,  simple,  noiseless  hinges  and  should  be  so  arranged  as  to 
eliminate  much  opening  between  back  and  seat.  The  curve  in  the 


THE  LOGAN  AUTOMATIC  SCHOOL  DESK. 

Manufactured   l,y   the    W.    Va.   School  Furniture   Co.,   Logan,    W.    Va. 
This  desk  is  so  constructed  mechanically  as  to  be  noiseless  and  automat- 
ic, the  back  curved  to  fit  the  back  of  the  student,  and  is  sanitary  in 
every  respect. 


92 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


bottom  of  the  seat  should  not  be  more  than  an  inch  to  one  and  one- 
half  inches  deep.  Single  seats  should  be  just  wide  enough  for 
comfort  and  to  prevent  moving  back  and  forth,  as  too  much  room 
will  allow  pupils  to  take  injurious  positions  at  desk.  In  inspecting 
a  seat  with  a  view  to  purchasing,  note  should  be  taken  to  see  that 
the  curve  in  the  back  fits  the  natural  position  of  the  spinal  column. 
"When  chairs  are  purchased  they  should  have  an  adjustable  back 
rest. 

The  Desk. — The  desk  should  be  strong  and  plain  with  as  much 
slope  as  safety  to  articles  left  upon  it  will  permit.  When  working 
at  the  desk  the  pupil  should  view  the  work  at  a  right  angle.  Desks 
that  are  too  level  and  too  high  cause  children  to  look  obliquely  at 
work  and  thus  injure  their  eyes.  The  desk  should  be  high  enough 
to  prevent  stooping  which  curves  the  spine  and  cramps  the  vital 
organs,  and  low  enough  to  allow  the  arm  to  rest  upon  the  desk  in 
a  natural  position  with  the  elbow  not  more  than  5  or  6  inches 
from  the  body. 

Color. — If  the  school  room  is  properly  finished  the  desks  should 
suit  the  color  scheme.  Extreme  or  bright  colors  should  be  avoided. 
Desks  should  not  have  a  gloss  finish  as  the  reflection  from  such  a 
surface  injures  the  eyes.  The  color  should  be  restful  and  the 
finish  dull. 

How  to  Place  Seats. 

Aisles. — There  should  be 
sufficient  space  between  the 
seats  and  walls  to  allow  pu- 
pils to  pass  each  other 
without  difficulty.  Con- 
siderable vacant  space  for 
recitations,  and  tables, 
charts,  and  other  appara- 
tus should  be  left  in  front 
of  room.  This  applies 
especially  to  primary 
rooms.  The  aisles  between 
the  seats  should  be  made  as 
wide  as  conditions  will  per- 
mit. 


From  "School  Hygiene."   Courtesy   The  Macmil- 
lan  Company,  Publishers. 

Adjustable  desk  and  chair  placed  so  as  to 
leave  plus  distance  between  them,  as  shown 
by  dotted  lines.  Unless  the  desk  is  adjusta- 
ble back  and  forth  plus  distance  should  be 
avoided. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


93 


Position  of  Seats. — A  chalk  line  should  be  used  to  aid  in  plac- 
ing seats  in  straight  lines.  The  seat  and  the  desk  should  be  far1 
enough  apart  to  allow  the  child  to  take  the  seat  or  stand  in  front 
of  it  with  ease.  Accompanying  cuts  show  the  improper  and  proper 
relative  positions  of  seat 
and  desk.  Adjustable  desks 
are  preferable,  but  as  long 
as  others  must  be  used, 
the  edge  of  the  desk 
should  overlap  the  front 
of  seat  about  one  to  two 
inches  as  shown  in  picture. 
Light  should  come  from 
left  and  rear  of  pupils. 

Space  Required. — Au- 
thorities agree  that  the  to- 
tal floor  space  should  be 
sufficient  to  allow  at  least 
15  square  ft.  of  floor  and 
200  cu.  feet  of  air  space 
to  each  pupil. 


From  "School  Hygiene."  Courtesy  The  Macmil- 
lan   Company,   Publishers 

An  adjustable  desk  and  chair  in  position  to 
show  minus  distance  as  indicated  by  the  dot- 
ted lines.  This  is  about  the  correct  position 
for  non-adjustable  seats.  Note  the  adjust- 
able back  rest  on  the  chair. 


WATER-CLOSETS   IN   KUEAL   SCHOOLS. 


At  last,  people  are  beginning  to 
understand  that  all  of  education 
does  not  come  from  books.  Sur- 
roundings may  do  much  for  or 
against  the  kind  of  education 
which  results  in  proper  habits 
and  good  character.  Directly 
opposed  to  the  efforts  of  teachers 
and  books  for  health,  purity  and 
decency  is  the  average  filthy 
water-closet  for  rural  schools. 


Courtesy  Ohio  Agriciiltural  College. 

There  are  several  such  closets  as 
this  in  West  Virginia.  This  is  used 
by  both  sexes.  It  is  a  reproach  upon 
common  decency  and  should  be  pre- 
vented by  law. 


94 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


State  Superintendent,  Edward  Hyatt,  of  California,  speaks  the 
plain  truth  when  he  says,  "And  look  once  more;  Don't  you  know 
some  school  water-closet  which  you  are  ashamed  to  enter?  There 
the  floors  are  wet  and  filthy,  the  air  polluted,  the  walls  putrid 


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with  every  obscene  device  that  can  be  made  with  knife,  and  pencil, 
and  chalk?  That's  immorality.  It's  bad,  bad  for  the  modesty  and 
morals  of  the  little  children  who  must  frequent  them.  "Would  you 
dismiss  all  this  with  a  shrug,  as  something  hallowed  by  time  and  en- 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


95 


deared  by  tradition  as  a  necessary  feature  of  the  American  rural 
school?  But  it  isn't  a  necessary  feature.  People  don't  want  their 
children  raised  in  such  conditions,"  These  conditions  are  not 
found  in  any  good  home  and  why  should  -the  mind:;  of  children 
from  such  homes  be  besmirched  with  such  filth.  Parents  and 
school  officers  arc  willing  to  buy  books  containing  wholesome 
thoughts  and  to  pay  teachers  to  point  the  phildren  in  the  right  di- 
rection and  at  he  same  time,  they  silently  agree  to  maintain  in  a 
cosnspicuous  place  a  water-closet  that  teaches  and  points  in  the 
opposite  direction. 


Courtesy  O.  ,T.  Kern,  author  of  "An^ong  Country  Schools." 

Location  of  Closets. — The  water-closets  for  boys  and  girls  should 
be,  if  possible,  on  opposite  sides  of  the  lot.  The  immediate  prem- 
ises about  each  should  be  considered  private  ground  for  the  sex  for 
which  intended.  The  drainage  should  be  carefully  considered 
when  locating  a  water-closet. 

Means  of  Making  Water-Closets  More  Private. — When  possible 
these  buildings  should  be  placed  behind  a  rise  in  the  ground  or 
in  a  clump  of  trees  or  bushes.  If  exposed  by  the  nature  of  the 


96 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 


Courtesy  O.  J.  Kern,  author  of  "Among  Country  Schools." 
OUTBUILDING  SHIELDED  BY  VINES. 

situation  they  should  be  surrounded  by  a  high  solid  board  fence, 
lattice-work,  or  vines.  The  accompanying  pictures  ebow  what  is 
being  done  in  many  schools.  , 

Building  and  Material. — The  building  should  be  large  enough 
to  accommodate  four  or  five  children  at  once.  Where  it  is  intend- 
ed for  a  large  school,  the  boys'  water-closet  should  be  partitioned, 
one  end  for  small  boys  and  one  for  large  boys.  The  outside  finish 
should  be  fully  as  complete  and  attractive  as  that  of  the  school 
house.  The  walls  inside  should  be  covered  with  rough  concrete, 
stone  color,  or  corrugated  sheet-iron  well  painted  in  a  medium  dark 
color.  If  these  cannot  be  provided,  medium  dark  paint  or  paper 
should  be  applied  as  often  as  required  to  keep  walls  free  from 
obscene  pictures  and  language. 

The  Seat  and  Vault. — County  Superintendent,  Roy  W.  Cloud, 
of  San  Mateo  County,  California,  says,  "The  seat  should  be  built 
over  a  large  box  partly  filled  with  loose  earth  and  supplied  with 
stout  wheels.  The  equipment  of  the  building  would  be  the  school 
ash  can  or  box  (ashes,  lime,  or  dry  dirt  may  be  used)  and  an  iron 
shovel.  The  children  should  be  instructed  to  spread  a  liberal 
shovelful  of  ashes  (lime  or  dirt)  over  the  excrescence."  From  Sup- 
erintendent Hosier's  article  we  quote,  "The  closet  should  not  be 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE.  97 

located  so  that  water  in  rainy  season  will  drain  from  it  on  to  the 
ground  and  pollute  the  soil.  It  should  be  constructed  with  the 
idea  constantly  in  mind  that  it  may  be  the  abiding  place  of  the 
most  deadly  enemies  of  the  community.  This  means  that  it  should 
be  securely  closed  in  every  way.  There  should  be  a  vault  built  of 
stone  and  cement  so  that  the  surrrounding  soil  cannot  be  contami- 
nated. This  vault  should  be  cleaned  three  or  four  times  a  year. 
The  contents  should  be  taken  far  from  the  building  and  scattered 
on  ground  where  they  will  be  exposed  to  the  sun  which  is  the  best 
destroyer  of  disease  germs.  There  is  also  what  is  called  the 
"pail  system."  By  this  plan  galvanized  iron  pails  are  placed  in 
the  vault,  and  removed  at  regular  intervals,  and  replaced  by  oth- 
ers. The  openings  in  the  closets  should  be  covered,  and  the  entire 
space  around  the  vault  made  so  tight  that  flies  cannot  enter.  For 
it  is  recognized  now  that  the  fly  is  the  most  common  carrier  of 
disease  germs.  School  boards  should  furnish  as  a  part  of  their 
regular  supplies  an  abundant  quantity  of  lime  and  fine  dry  earth 
which  should  be  used  freely  each  day  in  the  closet.  In  many  sec- 
tions wood  ashes  can  be  more  easily  secured,  and  they  are  better 
than  lime.  For  the  preservation  of  health  among  school  chil- 
dren, the  school  closet  should  receive  first  consideration.  School 
authorities  in  many  localities  are  criminally  negligent  in  this  mat- 
ter. For  the  sake  of  moral  decency,  the  approach  and  entrance  to 
the  closet  should  be  shielded  from  public  view  by  screens.'7 

The  Teacher. — After  all  we  must  look  to  the  teacher  to  keep  all 
in  decency  and  order  about  the  school.  No  amount  of  equipment 
is  worth  much  in  the  hands  of  a  weak,  indifferent  teacher.  On 
the  other  hand,  the  efficient,  energetic  teacher  will  bring  about  re- 
spectibility  and  order  under  the  most  unfavorable  conditions. 
The  school  premises  photograph  the  teacher. 


PLANS  AND  SPECIFICATIONS  FOR  A  ONE  ROOM  SCHOOL 
BUILDING,  BARBOUR  COUNTY. 

By  A.  F.  Shroyer,  County  Supt. 

(Note: — As  these  specifications  have  not  been  revised,  it  is  not 
claimed  that  they  are  perfect  in  all  respects.  They  are  inserted 
here  as  a  fair  sample  of  the  proper  form  for  similar  specifications.) 


98  SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 

House. — House  to  be  32  feet  long  and  24  feet  wide.  12  foot  story 
in  the  clear. 

Foundation . — Foundation  to  be  of  solid  range-ruble  wall  with 
four  air  vents — two  on  each  side.  Vents  to  be  8  inches  x  15  inches, 
and  the  same  to  have  iron  gratings.  The  vents  to  be  11  feet  from 
the  corner.  The  foundation  trench  to  be  dug  two  feet  deep,  and  the 
same  to  be  knapped  full  of  stone  upon  which  the  wall  is  to  be  built. 
Top  of  wall  is  to  be  12  inches  wide.  No  part  must  be  less  than  18 
inches  above  the  ground.  A  row  of  pillars  must  be  placed  in  center 
of  building  running  from  one  end  of  the  building  to  the  other ;  and 
the  same  to  be  six  feet  apart.  All  pillars  are  to  be  12  x  12  inches 
at  top,  and  bedded  in  the  same  way  as  wall.  Porch  to  have  three 
pillars  and  to  be  placed  one  at  each  corner  and  one-half  way  between 
the  corners.  To  be  bedded  in  the  same  way  as  others  and  to  be  the 
same  size. 

Sills. — All  sills  to  be  8  x  8  inches  of  good  sound  oak ;  half  lapped 
at  all  connections  and  well  fastened.  The  center  sill  running 
through  the  building  must  be  well  connected  with  wall  sills. 

Bottom  Joist. — Bottom  joist  to  be  of  good  sound  oak,  and  16 
inches  off  center.  Size  2  x  10  inches.  Must  be  bridged  half  way 
from  wall  to  center,  with  1x3  inch  lumber. 

Top  Joist. — To  be  2  x  6  inches,  16  inches  off  center.  Double 
joist  where  flue  is  built  2  x  10  inches.  All  joists  to  be  well  spiked. 

Studding. — Studding  to  be  2  x  4  inches,  good  poplar  or  pine. 
Space  16  inches  on  center  and  to  be  braced  at  each  corner  by 
standing  and  hanging  braces  with  a  three  foot  run.  All  windows 
and  doors  to  be  double  studded. 

Pldte. — Plate  around  the  top  to  be  2  x  4  inches,  doubled  and 
skipped  jointed. 

Rafters. — Rafters  to  be  2  x  6  inches,  and  roof  to  have  six  inch 
fall  to  the  foot.  Rafters  to  be  tied  by  collar  beam  with  l1/^  x  4  inch 
lumber,  to  be  placed  one-third  of  the  distance  from  plate  to  comb. 
Joist  to  be  tied  to  collar  beam,  with  1*4  x  4  inch  lumber — 8  feet 
from  wall. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE.  99 

Weatherboarding. — Weatherboarding  to  be  of  first  grade  poplar 
6  inches  wide.  Not  less  than  %  inches  thick  after  being  dressed, 
patent  siding,  or  y2  incn  thick,  old  fashioned  lap  siding. 

Roof. — Eoof  to  be  sheeted  solidly  with  1  inch  sound  lumber,  and 
to  be  covered  with  a  good  grade  "I-C"  tin.  Eoof  to  have  two  coats 
of  good  paint.  Five  days  allowed  for  first  coat  to  dry.  Roof  must 
be  well  fastened. 

Windows. — Six  large  windows  and  same  to  be  located  as  shown 
in  floor  plan.  Windows  to  be  3  feet  and  6  inches  from  floor  to  top 
of  stool.  Six  windows  to  be  hung  by  weights  and  a  good  lock  placed 
on  each  window.  They  are  to  be  4  light  windows  and  to  be  filled 
with  double  strength  "A"  glass  16  x  40.  Transom  over  main 
entrance  16  x  36  inches.  Same  to  be  reversible. 

Doors. — Doors  to  be  placed  as  indicated  in  floor  plan.  Doors  to 
be  of  best  grade  of  pine.  The  frcoit  door  and  library  door  to  be 
3x7  feet,  1%  inches  thick  with  a  good  substantial  mortise  lock  and 
4x4  inch  hinges.  Same  to  open  inward.  Two  cloak  room  doors 
to  be  2y2  x  6*/2  feet  but  same  are  to  be  omitted  but  places  finished 
for  doors. 

Floor. — Floor  to  be  of  good  sound  oak,  clear  of  worm  holes,  cracks 
and  knots.  Dressed  and  matched  not  over  three  inches  wide.  Must 
not  be  less  than  %  inches  thick  after  being  dressed.  All  flooring 
is  to  be  given  two  good  coats  of  regular  floor  oil. 

Ceiling. — To  be  of  first  class  poplar  or  first  class  pine.  Must  not 
be  over  three  inches  wide.  Must  be  well  matched  and  dressed. 
Ceiling  to  be  not  less  than  %  inches  thick  after  being  dressed.  All 
joints  must  be  broken  on  studding  and  joist.  Room  must  be  ceiled 
behind  black  board  same  as  other  parts. 

Casing. — Windows  and  doors  are  to  be  cased  in  workmanlike 
manner  with  first  class  poplar  casing  on  outside  and  on  inside  with 
first  class  oak  or  with  first  clasp  poplar  casing. 

Baseboard. — Baseboard  to  be  10  inches  wide  around  all  walls. 
Top  of  ceiling  to  be  finished  with  quarter  round. 


100  SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 

Flue. — One  good  6  brick  flue  to  be  built  according  to  floor  plans 
for  stove.  Well  plastered  and  made  perfectly  safe.  Must  be  built 
on  7  inch  flue  base,  extending  below  ceiling.  Flue  to  extend  3  feet 
above  roof.  Top  to  be  arched  and  a  2  inch  projection  8  inches  from 
the  top  of  square. 

Cornice  and  Projections. — There  must  be  a  16  inch  cornice.  Roof 
to  project  16  inches  beyond  gable. 

Condition  of  Lumber. — All  flooring,  weatherboarding,  casing 
and  ceiling  to  be  well  seasoned  and  well  dressed.  All  frame  timber 
to  have  been  on  stick  at  least  60  days,  except  sills. 

Partition. — All  partitions  to  be  framed  similar  to  outer  walls  Mini 
same  kind  of  material  to  be  used.  All  partitions  to  be  ceiled  on 
both  sides. 

Cloak  Room. — Cloak  room  to  be  four  feet  wide  on  inside,  to  be 
finished  same  as  room.  4  dozen  hat  hooks  to  be  placed  on  wall  in 
cloak  room  as  indicated  in  plans.  Hooks  to  be  fastened  in  strips 
fastened  to  walls.  4  shelves  of  good  dressed  lumber  must  be  placed 
in  cloak  room  as  indicated  in  plans.  Same  to  be  used  for  dinner 
buckets.  Shelves  to  be  painted. 

Lib  ran/  Room. — Five  shelves  to  be  placed  across  end  of  room  and 
on  one  side  as  indicated.  Same  to  be  finished  as  other  rooms. 

Painting  of  House. — The  outside  is  to  be  painted  with  three 
heavy  coats  of  pure  linseed  oil  and  white  lead  well  mixed,  or  its 
equivalent.  Time  must  be  allowed  for  each  coat  to  dry  before  the 
next  coat  is  put  on.  The  inside,  that  is,  all  rooms,  is  to  be  painted 
with  two  good  heavy  coats  to  cover  up  the  wood.  Color  to  be  as 
selected  by  board  of  education  and  county  superintendent. 

Blackboard. — A  20  foot  slate  blackboard  is  to  be  placed  in  the 
room  as  indicated.  Must  be  placed  2  feet  and  8  inches  above  the 
floor.  A  three  inch  chalk  tray  must  be  provided.  The  best  quality 
of  slate  is  to  be  used  and  must  be  4  feet  wide.  No  cracked  slate  is 
to  be  used. 

Scuttle  Hole. — The  scuttle  hole  in  ceiling    just    over    entrance, 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE.  101 

15  x  20  inches.  Trap  door  or  lid  must  be  provided  and  so  arranged 
that  the  place  will  not  be  noticed.  A  good  air  vent  must  be  placed 
in  each  end  of  the  building. 

Porch. — The  porch  to  be  of  proper  height  in  front  and  to  be  6  feet 
wide  and  8  feet  long,  that  is  4  feet  from  center  of  door  each  way. 
To  be  roofed  with  same  kind  of  roofing  as  house,  and  floor  to  be  of 
same  grade  as  house  floor,  and  to  be  given  three  coats  of  good  floor 
oil ;  painted  white  three  coats,  supported  by  two  good  columns  well 
fastened  to  the  floor.  Good  stone  steps  must  be  provided  at  porch 
and  same  to  be  not  less  than  4  feet  in  length.  Porch  to  be  latticed 
between  ground  and  flooring. 

Kind  of  Wtvk. — All  work  is  to  be  done  in  a  neat,  substantial  and 
workmanlike  manner,  subject  to  the  inspection  and  approval  of  the 
board  of  education  of  Glade  District. 

All  material  must  be  of  kind  specified  and  no  changes  can  be 
made  in  plans  and  specifications  without  a  written  permission  from 
board  of  education  of  Glade  District. 

Plans  and  specifications  approved  by  me,  August  31,  1909. 

A.  F.  SHROYER 
County  Superintendent. 

The  following  extracts  are  taken  from  ''Specifications  for  a  One- 
Boom  Frame  School  Building"  published  and  used  by  the  state  of 
Wisconsin.  These  paragraphs  are  selected  because  they  cover  some 
important  points  and  offer  valuable  suggestions  for  complete  speci- 
fications : 

Dimensions :  In  all  cases  where  drawings  are  figured,  such  figures 
must  be  taken  as  the  dimensions  given  without  reference  to  what 
the  contractor  finds  the  drawing  may  measure  on  the  scale. 

Should  any  drawing  or  figure  have  been  omitted  by  the  archi- 
tect necessary  to  a  perfect  understanding  of  the  plans  and  speci- 
fications, the  contractor  must  inform  the  board  of  education  or 
county  superintendent,  and  will  be  liable  for  all  mistakes  arising 
from  such  neglect. 

Extra  Work :  Should  any  extra  work  be  necessary,  the  cost  of 
the  same  shall  bo  mutually  agreed  upon  by  the  owner  and  con- 
tractor before  such  work  is  begun,  otherwise  no  extras  will  be  al- 
lowed. 


102  SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 

Concrete  :     Concrete  for  footings  to  be  made  as  follows : 
1  part  Portland  cement, 
3  parts  sharp  sand, 
5  parts  crushed  stone, 

properly  mixed  and  put  down  very  soft.     Stones  contained  in  sand 
to  be  counted  as  stone. 

Lathing :  All  lath  used  for  the  building  to  be  good  No.  1  hemlock 
lath  %  in.xl1/^  in.,  with  4  nailings  with  3-d  nails.  In  lathing  care 
must  be  taken  to  break  the  joints  at  least  every  18  inches.  There 
must  not  be  any  lathing  the  angles  from  one  room  to  another.  All 
corners  must  be  solid  before  lathing.  Shellac  all  knots  before  plast- 
ering. 

Plastering:  All  jambs  and  angles  must  be  made  plumb  and 
square,  and  all  corners  and  angles  true. 

All  parts  of  1st  story  will  be  lathed  as  above  and  plastered  with 
two  good  coats  of  strictly  first  quality  Wall  Plaster  %  in.  thick. 
The  last  coat  to  be  the  best  style  of  felt  float  sand  finish. 

Back  Plastering — Lathing:    All  outside  walls  to  be  lathed  hori- 
zontally, between  the  studding,  to  strips  put  on  by  the  carpenter 
from  floor  to  plate  at  ceiling ;  also  lath  all  ceilings  in  same  manner. 
Plaster  all  walls  and  ceilings  above  mentioned  with  one  heavy 
coat  of  strictly  first  quality  "Wall  Plaster,  %  in.  thick. 

General  Carpenter  Work:  All  timber  and  lumber  used  in  the 
construction  of  this  building  and  finishing  thereof,  to  be  thorough- 
ly seasoned,  free  from  defects  that  impair  its  strength  or  appear- 
ance, in  all  cases  fit  for  the  purposes  intended. 

All  work  to  be  done  in  a  substantial  and  workmanlike  manner, 
frame  work  straight,  plumb  and  true,  braced  where  necessary. 
Joists,  Studding,  Etc. :    All  joists  to  be  in  one  length. 

First   story   joists    2  in.xlO  in. — 16  in.  centers. 

Ceiling  joists    2  in.x  8  in. — 16  in.  centers. 

Ceiling  joists  over  hall 2  in.x  6  in. — 16  in.  centers. 

Rafters    2  in.x  6  in. — 16  in.  centers. 

Hip  rafters   2  in.x  8  in. 

Outside    studding    2  in.x  6  in. — 16  in.  centers. 

Inside  studding 2  in.x6  in.  &  4  in.— 16  in.  centers. 

Ceiling  joists  to  be  hung  to  rafters  at  center  by  1  in.x6  in. 
boards,  firmly  nailed  to  joists  and  rafters. 

Sill  Plates :  Plates  to  be  2  in.xS  in.  let  in  flush  with  top  of  joists 
with  a  2  in.x6  in.  spiked  on  top  to  receive  studs. 


SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE.  103 

Spike  short  joists  at  right  angles  to  joists  running  parallel  with 
walls. 

Roof:  Construct  the  roofs  as  shown  by  plans.  Board  the  same 
with  dry  dressed  hemlock  boards,  laid  close  and  nailed  at  each  bear- 
ing with  two  10-d  nails. 

Floors:  The  entire  first  story  floor  shall  be  double;  the  lining 
floor  of  dressed  hemlock  boards,  laid  diagonally  with  joints  cut  on 
the  joists  and  nailed  with  10-d  nails  at  every  bearing. 

The  finishing  floor  to  be  clear  maple  flooring  %  in.x21/4  in.  over 
blind  floor,  properly  nailed,  and  not  to  be  laid  until  all  inside  fin- 
ishing is  done,  and  until  painter  has  app  kd  one  coat  on  all  work; 
then  to  be  laid,  made  perfectly  smooth  and  clean,  and  covered  en- 
tirely with  one  layer  of  strawboard. 

Window  Details :     Check  rail  for  all  windows  to  be  1%  in.  high. 

Window  stops  wide  enough  to  cover  joint  of  frame  and  casing. 

1%  in.  thick  outside  casings. 

Bars  for  margin  light  windows  to  be  5-16  in.  thick  between  glass. 

Sash  1%  in.  thick;  make  them  to  run  smoothly  and  close  in  the 
frames  at  the  completion  of  the  building. 

Single  sash  arranged  to  swing  open. 

Transoms  over  doors  hung  by  butts  and  provided  with  transom 
lifts. 

Inside  Finish:  "Wainscoting  in  the  class  room,  hall  and  en- 
trance to  be  4  ft.  0  in.  high;  in  wardrobes  5  ft.  0  in.  high. 

Wardrobes:  Provide  wardrobes  with  shelves  as  shown;  teacher's 
closet  to  be  finished  up  with  one  12  in.  wide  shelf,  and  a  %  in.x4  in. 
bevel  strip  5  ft.  8  in.  from  floor  to  top  of  strip,  extending  around 
the  room  with  suitable  clothes  hooks  every  8  inches.  Hooks  in 
boy's  and  girl's  wardrobes  placed  4  ft.  high  and  8  in.  apart.  Hooks 
will  be  furnished  with  hardware. 

Outside  Painting :  Paint  the  entire  outside  of  the  building 
(shingles  of  roof  excluded),  finish  woodwork  and  metal  work  two 
good  coats  of  paint,  of  pure  linseed  oil  and  pure  white  lead,  proper- 
ly mixed  and  well  applied  to  the  building,  except  where  otherwise 
indicated;  including  ridge  boards.  Colors  to  be  selected  by  the 
owner.  First  coat  to  be  clear  white  lead  and  oil.  All  nail  holes  and 
cracks  to  be  puttied  in  best  manner. 

All  windows  will  have  storm  sash;  to  be  painted  two  coats  of 
paint. 

Painting  Watts :     All  plastered  walls  and  ceiling  in  entire  first 


104  SCHOOL  ARCHITECTURE. 

story  shall  be  painted  with  three  good  coats  of  oil  paint  in  colors 
as  will  be  selected. 

Fresh  Air  Intake:  Build  fresh  air  intake  18  in.  in  diameter  of 
No.  26  galvanized  iron  with  damper  to  same  near  outside  wall  and 
properly  connected  with  furnace.  Fresh  air  inlet  to  have  heavy 
wire  mesh  on  the  outside  of  same. 

Connect  furnace  to  smoke  stack  with  a  galvanized  iron  smoke 
pipe,  provided  with  a  regulating  cut  off  check  damper. 


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